What's so special about C and D Mint gold?

MrEureka

Seriously, aren't gold coins from the other mints just as cool? If I was going to collect mintmarked gold, I'm sure I'd go to the New Orleans or SF issues. Better value for the money. What am I missing?

???

coinkat

Good question... look at the 1859 $5 Lib. It is tougher than most collectors think but nobody cares.

FC57Coins

I think the fact that they're regional, that they're tied to a very unique time in the history of our country, that so much has been written about them that it makes you able to identify the exact date that some of the pieces were minted, the fact that they have their very own uniqueness about their look, the fact that when you look at these pieces, you can almost tell how primitive the minting conditions were at the time that they were made, the fact that they're tied into the Civil War, that they're rare, but still obtainable with a little bit of effort.

I think the list can be endless - I find these regional pieces very interesting. I think the fact that they're off beat - like Carson City minted coins, makes them enjoyable. There's nothing wrong with pieces from other mints - these things are just unique in their own right. IMHO.

Frank

coinkat

I forgot my

mgoodm3

Yeah, C & D suck bigtime. I'd much rather have P mint gold than a stinky branch mint coin.

FC57Coins

Yeah - who'd want to own one of these!

roadrunner

Andy, I concur 100%. I love S and O mint silver coinage from the 1800's. The S mintmark has always been popular...just look at the S mint coins from the 20th century. The O mint material has many similarities to the D mint gold (short list of coins, few saved in nice condition, habitually underrated, poor quality of manufacture is often an issue). I'd say that MS64 and 65 S/O mint seated quarters are very similar in rarity to the D mint $5's in MS62-63. However, there are no reference books dedicated to just O mint silver coinage. I think all it takes these days is a little marketing and a good reference book on the subject. You wanna write that book?

There is no doubt that S mint Liberty gold, and also S/O mint Liberty Seated silver is quite underrated compared to the darling D and CC mint coinage.

roadrunner

RYK

As a collector of branchmint gold coins, primarily D half eagles and O eagles, I do understand your viewpoint. The New Orleans coins, given their relative scarcity, probably do offer better value than the C and D mint coins. Like all areas of coin collecting (and other collectibles), true value is measured at least in part by the demand of an issue. It does not matter that there are very few available Phildelphia quarter eagles from the 1880's and 1890's if virtually no one collects them by date.

As for the C and D coins, part of their allure is, no doubt connected people's intrigue with the Civil War and the antebellum South. The mints were in operation for a considerably shorter time than the O and S mints, and closed a much longer time ago (1861 for C and D, 1909 for O, and still open for S). There also have been books written by Winters and others about the southern mints and their gold coinage; to my knowledge, no such books have been written about the S mint, and Winter's book on O mint gold coins is 11 years old and considerably out-of-date.

Robert

Robgetty

Everyone has their area that interests them. Alot of people
like southern branch mint gold. I'd love a Dahlonega mint
example someday because my sister lives there.

DaveG

Stop this nonsense immediately!

DO NOT listen to this madman! DO NOT buy S-mint and O-mint gold (especially the pre-Civil War issues)!

Continue to pay lots and lots of money for over-publicized coins minted in small, rural towns in Georgia, North Carolina and Nevada! DO NOT become fascinated by the history of San Francisco and New Orleans, two of the most interesting cities in America! DO NOT buy under-publicized, small mintage gold coins from Philadelphia!

Above all, DO NOT become a member of the Southern Gold Society! DO NOT pm me your e-mail address for a sample eNewsletter!

Thank you for your support.

Dahlonega

Andy.
No rational answer just got a 'Jones' for them...I think if someone ran a prospective double blind study they would find branch mint gold more highly addictive. Never found a cure or even a support group that helped.

mrcommem

Nobody would want any of them old and moldy Dahlonega coins in their collection?

Dahlonega

Mr. Commem what a super type set only one to go...the 39-D quarter eagle!
What are the grades and holders the 38-D G$5 looks like it would be stripped and sold as an Unc. if it ever fell into undeserving hands.
I believe you answered Andy's query better than any of us if you don't know what's special after seeing these coins you'll just never understand.

jom

Great set MrCommem!

jom

lordmarcovan

<< <i>What's so special about C and D Mint gold? >>



It's SOUTHERN, that's what! YeeeeHaw!



Well, so is New Orleans, but they're too Frenchified to be REAL Southerners...

FC57Coins

<< <i>Well, so is New Orleans, but they're too Frenchified to be REAL Southerners... >>




Good thing GSAGUY (remember him?) doesn't do gold

RYK

I think that the number of extant collectible coins from the Dahlonega mint makes them interesting as a collecting objective. There are an estimated 10,000 Dahlonega coins (all dates and denominations) available to collect (excludes holed, harshly cleaned, etc. coins). When you compare this number to classic US rarities like the 09-S VDB Lincoln or the 16-D Merc dime, there are more of each of these two classic rarities than there are Dahlonega gold coins (all dates/denoms combined).

Also, the number of coins available makes them rare but still collectible. If they were less available, it probably would be too frustrating to collect them, and people would lose interest. If they were considerably more available, perhaps people would also lose interest because they would be too easy to obtain.

I still think a big factor is the books about the series. If DW (or someone else) wrote a book about "S" half eagles and eagles, I think collector interest would increase.

mrcommem

Dahlonega,

All of the coins are graded PCGS AU55 except for the three dollar piece which is PCGS AU50. The 38-D has a nice transparent semi-prooflike luster to it. It does have a reed mark on the cheek which keeps the grade down. I think if I resubmitted it I think it would go AU58. I think the 47-D's would both probably upgrade to AU58 as well as the 59-D dollar. The three dollar gold is the nearest 54-D with a full strike that I have seen, excluding the Bass coin. The 38-D the 47-D half eagle and the 55-D are all ex North Georgia coins.

Baley

If I was going to collect mintmarked gold, I'm sure I'd go to the New Orleans or SF issues.





the second year of SF production.... still looking for a nice first year coin for my set

FatMan

I collect Dahlonega Gold. Special? Yes. For me it’s just a neighborhood thing I guess.

Dahlonega is one of my favorite playgrounds. I live an hour from Dahlonega which sits in the high foothills of the Appalachian (Smoky) Mountains about 70 miles north of Atlanta. I have hiked/backpacked the woods of the area, canoed the rivers of the area, and canoed through an abandoned gold mine. Dahlonega is the closest town to Springer Mountain, the southern trailhead (starting point) of the Appalachian Trail. My activities illustrate that Dahlonega is like no other mint location past or present. This is a mix of rural southern Appalachia and deep wilderness, much just as it was in 1838.

Today I drove past Price Hall, the building that currently sits on the foundation of the old US Mint, on my way to hike Blood Mountain and then Desoto Falls. I noticed that it was quieter today on the town square than usual. The old square is normally very busy, considering a town population of 5000. I thought of this thread as I drove the 12 miles from town to my trailhead.

It is my interest in history that drew me to coin collecting. And Dahlonega is great history. Not just great history but a great story. Some of the chapters are the First Gold Rush, Cherokee Indians and the First Steps On The Trail of Tears, The First and Only Branch Mint in a Rural Frontier Town, Politics, More Politics, Civil War, and Even More Politics. Dahlonega is very unique. It is a true American novel of the rise and fall of Southern Appalachia and the Branch Mint was a major chapter. Many great books exist on the subject and are worth reading if daring to take the risk. What risk you ask?.... Of course, the risk of getting hooked. The coins of Dahlonega are as unique and rare as its history.

MrCommen, That is a wonderful set. Congratulations.