B Max Mehl , " The Star Coin Encyclopedia "

DUIGUY

A collector friend sent me copies of some pages . Listed on one page was the 1913 Liberty nickel $50.00 .

If I collected in 1936 I wonder if the 1913 would have bin considered "modern" crap ?

cladking

B Max Mehl was The promoter for this coin. He advertised in paper all over the
country to pay $50 for a 1913 liberty nickel while knowing full well they were all
accounted for. This was a massive spur to the hobby.

DUIGUY

I understand Mehl also listed the 1804 dollar for an auction but it was withdrawn at the last moment.
Me thinks Max had a bit of P. T. Barnum in his blood !

cladking

<< <i>I understand Mehl also listed the 1804 dollar for an auction but it was withdrawn at the last moment.
Me thinks Max had a bit of P. T. Barnum in his blood ! >>




He had a lot of PT Barnum.

He also made a fortune on selling lists and filling small orders.

jmski52

I have a 1959 copy of the Star Rare Coin Encyclopedia that I bought at an estate sale a few years ago. The 1913 Nickel is listed as "very rare and very valuable." No price was listed in my 1959 version.

On another note, I posted the following pics from the same issue a few weeks ago, which show that there was virtually no distinction drawn between ANY of the Saint Gaudens $20 Gold Double Eagles - no date, mint mark, or variety distinctions, thus they were not much more than bullion - and the pricing reflects just that. Also, you can be certain that in 1959, no St. Gaudens Double Eagles were ever used in any daily transactions, so their status as a coin was not based on that criterion then, or now.

When I pointed some of this out to one of the resident classic coin experts, his attitude was pretty much, "so what?" Well, I think that it's interesting history, but apparently it's really not. In my opinion, Max Mehl's catalog is great documentation about what the modern collectors have all been saying, that modern bullion coins are indeed collectible as coins, and will certainly enjoy a following that only increases as time goes by.

DUIGUY

Interesting thoughts jmski52 . Love the book !

Numismanic

Mehl had some interesting "buy prices" in his catalouge. For instance in my 1936 edition of the Star Rare Coin Encyclopedia the
price for a 1796 quarter was $2.00 to $10.00, an 1876-CC twenty center was $25.00 to $100.00 , an 1838-O half dollar was
$100.00 to $500.00. He had the 1822 Half Eagle listed at $2500.00 to $6500.00, apparently he wanted one of those very much.

compromonedas

From the 1942 Blue Book


Keith

Coxe

<< <i>

<< <i>I understand Mehl also listed the 1804 dollar for an auction but it was withdrawn at the last moment.
Me thinks Max had a bit of P. T. Barnum in his blood ! >>




He had a lot of PT Barnum.

He also made a fortune on selling lists and filling small orders. >>



A lot of what is the hobby today, for better and worse, can be traced back to Max Mehl and his marketing style. He was the reference for how to buy, sell and collect coins when the hobby was popularized after WWII.

jmski52

Mehl had some interesting "buy prices" in his catalouge. For instance in my 1936 edition of the Star Rare Coin Encyclopedia the
price for a 1796 quarter was $2.00 to $10.00, an 1876-CC twenty center was $25.00 to $100.00 , an 1838-O half dollar was
$100.00 to $500.00. He had the 1822 Half Eagle listed at $2500.00 to $6500.00, apparently he wanted one of those very much.

By 1959, his "buy prices" for the above coins were as follows:

1796 Quarter - $5.00 to $125.00 (125% to 625% gain)
1876-CC Twenty Cents - $100.00 to $650.00 (200% to 325% gain)
1838-O Half Dollar - $100.00 to $500.00 (no change)
1822 Half Eagle - $2,500.00 to $6,500.00 (no change)

So, for a period of 23 years, the Half Dollar and the Half Eagle remained the same, while the other two coins at least realized some potential.

Aegis3

By 1959 the B Max Mehl company was run by someone else (I don't recall who bought it out), what with Mehl having been dead for a few years.

ernie11

Here's an example of his P. T. Barnum style in this advertiser.

PerryHall

B Max Mehl sounds like a con man. He would have loved the internet and eBay specifically.

cladking

<< <i>B Max Mehl sounds like a con man. He would have loved the internet and eBay specifically. >>



He didn't rip people off though, he just got the whole country
looking at their coins, buying Waite Raymond albums, and collecting
coins to while away the depression.

Michigan

<< <i>By 1959 the B Max Mehl company was run by someone else (I don't recall who bought it out), what with Mehl having been dead for a few years. >>




Mehl died in Oct. of 1957. Does anyone know who bought the rights to the name and how long they kept the business going under
the Mehl name?. I seem to recall that the business name sold for around $25,000 or $50,000 (a substantial amount in the 1950s)

PerryHall

<< <i>

<< <i>B Max Mehl sounds like a con man. He would have loved the internet and eBay specifically. >>



He didn't rip people off though, he just got the whole country
looking at their coins, buying Waite Raymond albums, and collecting
coins to while away the depression. >>



He convinced desperate people to buy his book so they could pluck rare coins (such as 1913 Lib nickels and 1804 dollars) from circulation and sell them to him for a lot of money. Sounds like a con man to me.

Michigan

<< <i>

<< <i>

<< <i>B Max Mehl sounds like a con man. He would have loved the internet and eBay specifically. >>



He didn't rip people off though, he just got the whole country
looking at their coins, buying Waite Raymond albums, and collecting
coins to while away the depression. >>



He convinced desperate people to buy his book so they could pluck rare coins (such as 1913 Lib nickels and 1804 dollars) from circulation and sell them to him for a lot of money. Sounds like a con man to me. >>




Abe Kosoff said in "Abe Kosoff Remembers" that some things Mehl did might not pass muster in the honesty in advertising
area if he was active in later years before the govt. took serious notice of such things but he did do more than anyone else
in getting a lot of people interested in collecting. "borderline questionable" might be the right term for some of his advertising
techniques.

Michigan

<< <i>

<< <i>

<< <i>

<< <i>B Max Mehl sounds like a con man. He would have loved the internet and eBay specifically. >>



He didn't rip people off though, he just got the whole country
looking at their coins, buying Waite Raymond albums, and collecting
coins to while away the depression. >>



He convinced desperate people to buy his book so they could pluck rare coins (such as 1913 Lib nickels and 1804 dollars) from circulation and sell them to him for a lot of money. Sounds like a con man to me. >>




Abe Kosoff said in "Abe Kosoff Remembers" that some things Mehl did might not pass muster in the honesty in advertising
area if he was active in later years before the govt. took serious notice of such things but he did do more than anyone else
in getting a lot of people interested in collecting. "borderline questionable" might be the right term for some of his advertising
techniques. >>




Correction: should read "was active in later years when the govt. took serious notice of such things".

jmski52

Mehl died in Oct. of 1957. Does anyone know who bought the rights to the name and how long they kept the business going under
the Mehl name?. I seem to recall that the business name sold for around $25,000 or $50,000 (a substantial amount in the 1950s)

There is no mention in my 1959 Edition of anyone other than Max Mehl, and he is still listed in 1959 as the compiler and publisher. He did a pretty good job of cataloguing and picture layout. Looks like a "classic" small business owner to me.