Post #1000 and Album Giveaway [CLOSED]

The_Dinosaur_Man

After some four years on this forum, I have finally reached post #1000. I want to thank all of you for the time spent on here so far, for the conversations, the shared photos of coins and related material, and the experiences gained from this wonderful hobby.

With this post, I am offering one of my homemade albums as a giveaway. Out of respect for the knowledge shared on this site, whoever is the first to get the following questions right will win the free book*.

1) When has the Denver Mint made a commercially available Proof?

2) What was the last year that all business strike quality coins were issued into circulation?

3) Which is the only former Mint facility no longer standing?

4) There are six times in the history of U.S. numismatics that a denomination has been struck at five different mints in the same calendar year. Name the coin and the year for each incident.

*The album will be limited to a maximum of three pages which I would normally sell for $90. The set can be anything, U.S., Foreign, Gold, Type, or a Year Set. The album's approximate height matches that of Whitman Folders and LOC albums.

After all this is done I'll get back to contributing like a regular forumite. Cheers!

Mr_Spud

1 The Denver Mint has been involved in proof coinage production, particularly since 1968 when it took over most proof-coinage production from Philadelphia, and since 1975, it has been used almost exclusively for proof coinage.
2 The last year that all business strike quality coins (meaning coins made for general circulation) were issued into circulation in the United States was 1964.
3 The Manila Mint is the only former mint facility no longer standing.
4 There are six instances in U.S. numismatic history where a denomination was struck at five different mints in the same year. Here's the list:
Cent, 1794
Half Cent, 1794
Dime, 1879
Quarter, 1879
Half Dollar, 1879
Dollar, 1879

Creg

Dang, Spud you beat me to it.

rec78

1. Never
2. 1949
3. Charlotte
4. 1854-quarter eagle
   1856-quarter eagle
   1854-half eagle
   1855-half eagle
   1856-half eagle
   1857-half eagle

JeffersonFrog

1. Never
2. 2001, half & sac started NIFC in 2002
3. Dahlonega, fire destroyed it in 1878
4. 1854-quarter eagle
   1856-quarter eagle
   1854-half eagle
   1855-half eagle
   1856-half eagle
   1857-half eagle

hummingbird_coins

1. 1984 d proof Olympic torch bearers gold $10
2. 1946 (not sure if I'm interpreting the question right)
3. Dahlonega
4. What they said

JeffersonFrog

1. 1984-D $10 Olympic torch bearers gold proof
2. 2001, Kennedy half started NIFC in 2002
3. Dahlonega, fire destroyed it in 1878
4. 1854-quarter eagle
   1856-quarter eagle
   1854-half eagle
   1855-half eagle
   1856-half eagle
   1857-half eagle

hummingbird_coins

I completely forgot about the nifc's but he didn't know about the D mint proof to begin with... Does he really deserve it? 🤔

JeffersonFrog

Your OP doesn't preclude multiple guesses, so I'll try one last time.
1. 1984-D $10 Olympic torch bearers gold proof
2. If you mean 1c - 50c, then 2023 was the last year the Kennedy half was issued for circulation. If you mean 1c - $1, then 2001 was the last year both a Kennedy half and a Sacagawea dollar were issued for circulation.
3. Dahlonega, fire destroyed it in 1878
4. 1854-quarter eagle
1856-quarter eagle
1854-half eagle
1855-half eagle
1856-half eagle
1857-half eagle

ElmerFusterpuck

Nice giveaway! Is there a prize for the last answer?

braddick

@ElmerFusterpuck said:
Nice giveaway! Is there a prize for the last answer?

There should be.

The_Dinosaur_Man

Thanks guys for the responses so far. Looks like question #2 is the biggest challenge so I'll rephrase it (slightly) and let this run a few more days.

Everyone will get one more chance (including you @JeffersonFrog !) and whoever is closest will get the free book.

Question #2: What was the last year that all business strike quality coins were issued into circulation? Means no NIFC aside from Proof coins.

Mr_Spud

1. 1984-D $10 Olympic torch bearers gold proof
2. 1981
3. Dahlonega
4. 1854-quarter eagle
   1856-quarter eagle
   1854-half eagle
   1855-half eagle
   1856-half eagle
   1857-half eagle

thebeav

Those are really nice looking albums.
Great job !

hummingbird_coins

I never knew there were no mint sets in 1950. I suppose that is the answer you are looking for?

JeffersonFrog

There has never been a year where the half cent, cent, two cent, three cent, nickel, half dime, dime, twenty cent piece, quarter, half dollar, dollar, gold dollar, $2.5G, $3G, $5G, $10G, and $20G coins were all produced [i.e. - all business strike coins issued for circulation].

1872 comes close ...

Congrats on 1000 posts!

The_Dinosaur_Man

I'll be closing out this contest tomorrow night. May the fourth be with you all!

steve_richardson

Love the albums, and the idea for a giveaway. No way that I’d be able to get the answers right without a lot of searching online, so I’ll just say good luck everyone! And May the Fourth be with you, always!

The_Dinosaur_Man

I have decided to end the contest and award the victory to @Mr_Spud ! Although the correct answer for Question #2 was not provided, Mr_Spud did guess the closest with the year 1981.

The answers to the questionnaire are as follows:

1) When has the Denver Mint made a commercially available Proof?
1984-D, Olympic Torch Bearers. This is the only time to date that the Colorado-based facility has produced a proof that was available to collectors. In that year, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and West Point also produced proofs of this design and as such it is the only time that all four current mints struck the same type in Proof.

https://www.pcgs.com/coinfacts/coin/1984-d-10-olympic-dcam/9615

Bonus fact: CDN Greysheet erroneously listed the 2017-D Boys Town commemorative half dollar as a Proof.

2) What was the last year that all business strike quality coins were issued into circulation?
1985. In this year, the U.S. Mint struck the Cent, Nickel, Dime, Quarter, and Half Dollar at the Philadelphia and Denver Mints and issued all such coins into circulation. There were no commemoratives and bullion coinage did not start until the following year.

https://www.donahuenumismatics.com/Coins_by_the_Year/Coins_by_the_Year.html#1985

3) Which is the only former Mint facility no longer standing?
Dahlonega Mint. As pointed out by @JeffersonFrog, this facility was burned down in 1878. Following its closure during the Civil War, the former facility became a University building. A photograph depicting the structure from the 1870s survives.

Regarding the other former facilities:
Carson City - Now the Nevada State Museum and still striking some medals with the CC mintmark
New Orleans - The building still stands and serves as a museum. All presses were removed in 1911.
Charlotte Mint - Local citizens petitioned to have the Mint reopened in 1873 and were denied. The building itself was to be destroyed in 1931 to make room for the Post Office. The citizens banded together, bought it from the Treasury, and relocated the building to downtown.

4) There are six times in the history of U.S. numismatics that a denomination has been struck at five different mints in the same calendar year. Name the coin and the year for each incident.

This could only occur between 1854 and 1861 when the U.S. had five mints operating at the same time: Philadelphia, Charlotte, Dahlonega, New Orleans, and San Francisco. Since the Civil War, the U.S. has not had more than four facilities in operation at the same time.

1854 - Quarter Eagle, Half Eagle
https://www.donahuenumismatics.com/Coins_by_the_Year/Coins_by_the_Year.html#1854

1855 - Half Eagle
https://www.donahuenumismatics.com/Coins_by_the_Year/Coins_by_the_Year.html#1855

1856 - Quarter Eagle, Half Eagle
https://www.donahuenumismatics.com/Coins_by_the_Year/Coins_by_the_Year.html#1856

1857 - Half Eagle
https://www.donahuenumismatics.com/Coins_by_the_Year/Coins_by_the_Year.html#1857

Thank you to all who gave this contest a go, and congrats again to @Mr_Spud !

Mr_Spud

Wow, thanks 😊. You are very generous.