How does one become a member of the mysterious Rittenhouse Society?

Longacre

People have said that the US Presidency is the most exclusive club in the world. I beg to differ. It seems that the Rittenhouse Society is far more elusive. Does anyone know anything about this secret coin society and what the requirements of membership are? I believe that some forum members are members of this society. I am not interested in learning what the secret handshake is, or the mystical chants that members may have to recite at meetings, but I am curious about the details of this organization. Does anyone know, or is the standard response to such questions, "we will neither confirm nor deny the existance of this group"?

cladking

I believe they pick you, you don't pick them.

Fletcher

Here is a snippet

"At that convention a small group of similarly-aged
enthusiasts met for the first time. We all became life-long
friends. That group consisted of Ken Bressett, Dave Bowers,
Walter Breen, George Fuld, Grover Criswell, Ken Rendell
and myself. Each of us have made our own contributions to
numismatics in our own way. Later we formalized that close-
knit association by forming the Rittenhouse Society (named
after the first Director of the U.S. Mint).

This organization still exists today with only one new member
added a year. We are not as snooty as this exclusivity sounds,
however. Our original intent was -- and that tenet continues
to the present -- to encourage young enthusiasts to really
become interested in numismatics enough to make a significant
contribution to the field. I would be hard pressed to
enumerate the total number of books and articles Rittenhouse
Society members have published.

One of my proudest moments was to vote with my peers into
Rittenhouse Society membership two years ago your E-Sylum
editor, Wayne Homren. This is exactly the caliber of person
it takes to become a candidate for membership. And in no
small part have you, the subscribers to E-Sylum, thrust on
Wayne the responsibility he so adequately fulfills. Wayne
helped bring us old-timers and numismatics into the 21st
century with his electronic medium!"

IGWT

Now that's a Circle of Trust™.

Russ

You have to be a 33rd level Mason and know the secret handshake.

Russ, NCNE

ziggy29

If I told you, I'd have to kill you.

Hyperion

sounds more like an elite golf group (there are only 4 in existance at any one time)...

sounds kinda like buying a luxury item. if you have to ask, you can't afford it.

ColonialCoinUnion

I believe you can become elligible based on the quality of your posting here in the forum, but not if you keeping writing 'smoe'.

Pistareen

Am I the only member on the boards? I can't be. Captain Henway might be a member too?

It is by invitation only, typically at the rate of 1 new member per year. We meet once a year, for breakfast, at the ANA convention. Invitation to membership is based on contributions to the body of numismatic research and scholarship. Once upon a time it was for "young bucks" -- mostly members under 30. Alas, I think I'm the only member under 30 now.

We have no officers or dues, but I kinda serve as secretary pro-tem, because it's my job to reserve a table for 20 someplace for breakfast. Tough gig.

Anyway, there is no organization whose membership means more to me than the Rittenhouse Society, if only because people I really admire asked me to be a part of it!

Some well known members:

Eric Newman
Dave Bowers
Bill Fivaz
Ken Bressett
Joel Orosz
Bob Julian
...and many more!

By the way -- I think the most exclusive is the Seven Society at the University of Virginia. Membership of an individual is not made public until their death.

Russ

<< <i>Am I the only member on the boards? >>



I'm pretty sure forum member "Rittenhouse" is a member.

Russ, NCNE

Pistareen

<< <i>I'm pretty sure forum member "Rittenhouse" is a member. >>



Russ speaks truth. I kinda forget Craig is a member here since he hardly ever posts anymore, which is a real shame -- there is perhaps no one I've learned more from about the First Mint. The guy knows his stuff.

Thanks for pointing out this highly notable omission Russ! I guess you do know about more than just Kennedys

kranky

Yes, it would be nice if Rittenhouse was around more. But I thought I had heard he was stepping away from coins to work on something else (antiques, maybe?). Know anything about that, Pistareen?

[begin thread hijack] I still remember the thread where Rittenhouse said that the claim that the Carter/Contursi 1794 dollar was the first one struck was just conjecture. That opinion seems to be in the minority these days, but I still think it's a mighty big stretch to make such a claim in the complete absense of any documentation. [end thread hijack]

CaptHenway

<< <i>Yes, it would be nice if Rittenhouse was around more. But I thought I had heard he was stepping away from coins to work on something else (antiques, maybe?). Know anything about that, Pistareen?

[begin thread hijack] I still remember the thread where Rittenhouse said that the claim that the Carter/Contursi 1794 dollar was the first one struck was just conjecture. That opinion seems to be in the minority these days, but I still think it's a mighty big stretch to make such a claim in the complete absense of any documentation. [end thread hijack] >>



I also believe that the "first one struck" theory, while plausible, has not yet been proven. I did suggest to one of the principals that the coin be compared with the copper trial piece to see if the die alignments are PRECISELY the same, which would support the theory that this piece was struck immediately after the copper piece. I never heard of this was done or not.

John K....... just for that, you get to pick up the check this year.

Tom DeLorey, proud member of the Rittenhouse Society
AND the Society Of Bearded Numismatists

Pistareen

Tom -- I had a sneaking suspicion I sat next to you at a past breakfast, but my mind is too full of data on the Anglo-American Convention of 1818 to remember such minutiae.

The 1794 dollar is a supercool and is certainly the earliest die state known. Known. KNOWN.

I'd have to ask Eric Newman if it was the first one struck. He was there that day.

Kranky -- Rittenhouse and his wife are also experts on a certain series of antique ceramics. I see him occasionally at Baltimore shows but I miss seeing him more! We met in the early 1990s at a small coin show in Lancaster, PA and hit it off immediately -- here was someone else who cared what kind of collar was used in 1797! He's a real numismatic genius.

Coxe

<< <i>Tom DeLorey, proud member of the Rittenhouse Society
AND the Society Of Bearded Numismatists >>



How does one become a member of the Society Of Bearded Numismatists? I have a beard and have dabbled a bit in numismatics.

HTubbs

<< <i>

<< <i>Tom DeLorey, proud member of the Rittenhouse Society
AND the Society Of Bearded Numismatists >>



How does one become a member of the Society Of Bearded Numismatists? I have a beard and have dabbled a bit in numismatics. >>





Give me a month or two and I'll give you a good beard

CaptHenway

<< <i>

<< <i>Tom DeLorey, proud member of the Rittenhouse Society
AND the Society Of Bearded Numismatists >>



How does one become a member of the Society Of Bearded Numismatists? I have a beard and have dabbled a bit in numismatics. >>



You need a Tardis. The Society expired in the mid-1980's, but I still wear my "S.O.B. of the Year" award for 1981 to the ANA convention.
TD

AU58WALKERS

<< <i>I believe you can become elligible based on the quality of your posting here in the forum, but not if you keeping writing 'smoe'. >>



What if you throw your self on the grenade for the little guys?

Coxe

<< <i>

<< <i>

<< <i>Tom DeLorey, proud member of the Rittenhouse Society
AND the Society Of Bearded Numismatists >>



How does one become a member of the Society Of Bearded Numismatists? I have a beard and have dabbled a bit in numismatics. >>



You need a Tardis. The Society expired in the mid-1980's, but I still wear my "S.O.B. of the Year" award for 1981 to the ANA convention.
TD >>



I have a Tallis, not a Tardis. Alas, not a member of the Time Lords. (Wonder how many others get this.)

CaptHenway

"Let's do the time warp again!!!!!!!"

dorancoins

<< <i>You have to be a 33rd level Mason and know the secret handshake.

Russ, NCNE >>




For everyones FYI, there is no such thing as a 33rd Degree Mason. In the Masonic Lodge (or the Blue Lodge as its known), the highest level a Mason can be is a 3rd Degree (also known as a Master Mason). The 33rd Degree designation is if one belongs to a part of Masonry called the Scottish Rite. Not everyone belongs to the Scottish Rite and those who belong are mostly 32nd Degree. 33rd Degree is as high as one gets, and it is usually bestowed to those who have contributed a great deal to Masonry (from ordinary, private citizens to politicians and entertainers).

Now, there is the York Rite, which consists of the Royal Arch Masons (also know as Chapter), Cyptic Council of Masons (known as Council), and the Knights Templar (known as Commandery). Like the Scottish Rite, not everyone is a member. But both the Scottish and York Rites are good organizations to belong if you're a Mason. And I speak from experience being a York Rite member while my father was both a Scottish and York Rite member. If anyone has a Masonic question, I would be happy to answer it as long as the question is not a parody or a joke.

And with the secret handshake, there is some truth to that but its a "lodge secret!"

Sincerely,
Michael Doran (dorancoins)
A Past Master in the Blue Lodge, and a Past Commander, Past TIM, and Past EHP in the York Rite bodies.

Russ

<< <i>but my mind is too full of data on the Anglo-American Convention of 1818 to remember such minutiae. >>



Nerd alert!

Russ, NCNE

CaptHenway

.......or, there really ARE 33rd Degree Masons, but they just want you to think that they don't really exist.......
LOL
.
As Frank Burns once said to a Korean family: "Do you have any papers to prove that these ARE your papers???"

TD

robertpr

<< <i>

<< <i>but my mind is too full of data on the Anglo-American Convention of 1818 to remember such minutiae. >>



Nerd alert!

Russ, NCNE >>



That's kind of like calling "earthquake alert" when the ground is violently shaking. The obvious response is "no kidding".

Pistareen

<< <i>Nerd alert! >>



Yeah, guilty as charged. Being a nerd's earned me more money than being handsome!

dorancoins

<< <i>.......or, there really ARE 33rd Degree Masons, but they just want you to think that they don't really exist.......
LOL
.
As Frank Burns once said to a Korean family: "Do you have any papers to prove that these ARE your papers???"

TD >>



As in my previous post, 3rd (THIRD) Degree is the highest degree in regular Masonry - Period! 33rd Degree is the highest one can be in the Scottish Rite, which you have to be a Mason to belong. And as I said, most members of the Scottish Rite are 32nd Degree - there are not a lot of people who are 33rd Degree Scottish Rite.

I have posted some links for those who wish to know more about Freemasonry and its appended bodies. Two of the links are Illinois links but you'll get a general idea about the Masons and the York Rite, the other link is that of the Scottish Rite Northern Jurisdiction based in Massachusetts.

Freemasonry In Illinois
York Rite In Illinois
Scottish Rite Website - Northern

coindeuce

I have a long standing aquaintance with John Rittenhouse, a descendant of David Rittenhouse, and I think he would be very flattered to know that such an organization exists, not just for the sake of the fact that they honor his ancestor, but for the sake of the purpose they serve.

LanLord

Man, all this talk of secret organizations makes me want to form one myself.

I refuse to invite anyone else, so it's now even more exclusive than Rittenhouse or anyone else's secret clubs.

I intend to go to breakfast tomorrow and post about my first meeting as soon as I return.