Coin Collecting Back When I Started

melvin289

I just posted this picture on a thread about self adhesive coin holders. In looking at the picture it brought back memories of how coin collecting was when I first started buying coins around 1967 or 1968. The 1866 3¢ Nickel was the first coin I ever bought. I have a better coin for the set but leave the beat up old '66 there for sentimental reasons. It was a chore putting together this set of coins. Three Cent Nickels were not common and ordinary coins around here. We had a coin shop in Charlotte which was a 30 some mile drive one way. An older gentleman ran a little coin shop locally in the back room of his wife's Merle Norman cosmetic shop in a local shopping center. Other than that we had the once a month meeting of the local coin club. When the club met there was always dealers present and set up to do business. Coin World was around but I never subscribed and had no access to ads for out of town dealers. Basically we took the coins we were looking for in the condition we found them. Cleaned coins were common place. They were not the big deal they are now. There were no experts to ask except the older collectors if you were lucky enough to get to know them. For the most part they had to size you up and realize you were serious before they would waste their time on you.

Things have certainly come a long way since I started in this hobby.

Ron

BigE

Nice set of coins there Ron, in their "original slabs". I like the one with the dymo label!---------------------Eric

Swampboy

What a great post.

Glad you never cracked 'em out.
They look cool in those 2 x 2s.

Flatwoods

I wish I had a coin shop within 30 miles now!

Great story. Thanks for sharing.

ricko

Coin collecting has changed radically over the years. Grading, condition, coin shows, literature and many more things. Definitely not the same hobby. Like all things, evolution continues. Cheers, RickO

MidLifeCrisis

<< <i>Coin collecting has changed radically over the years. Grading, condition, coin shows, literature and many more things. Definitely not the same hobby. Like all things, evolution continues. Cheers, RickO >>


I would not have come back to the hobby if those changes had not occurred - particularly the TPGs. I have bad memories of trying to collect as a kid and not being treated very well by the old men in the local coin club, or by the local dealers who would set up at flea markets.

I'm glad times have changed. If only the prices had remained the same!

johnny9434

its defiinitly changed over the years. i remember back in the 60s and early 70s when it was just that collecting