Gene Henry Obituary

messydesk

This appeared in the most recent issue of "The View" newsletter sent out by VAM dealer Logan McKechnie.

Gene L. Henry, 73, a lifelong resident of Seattle, and a coin collector since the age of 11, died September 23 while playing tennis with friends at a club near his home. He passed out on the court. Cause of death is under investigation.

A well known and respected VAM expert, Henry became interested in numismatics when he inherited a box of old coins from his father. Although the coins were minimal value, they started a fascination with coins that has lasted his entire life.

At the age of 13, he worked as a cashier at his junior high school and managed to accumulate hundreds of better date Lincoln cents. By the age of 15, he was running ads in the "Numismatic Scrapbook" magazine. When the publisher discovered that he was under 21, he suspended his advertising privileges until his mother sent the magazine a notarized letter stating that she would legally stand behind her son's dealings. No one ever had cause to complain to her, at least not about his coin business.

In 1958 while in high school,, Henry's mail order coin business kept him so busy that he had to quit the basketball and track teams to fill coin orders. One ad alone, offering 100 mixed pre-1940 mint-marked Lincoln cents at $2.95 postpaid, drew more than 200 orders.

After graduating from high school in 1960, he attended his first American Numismatic Association (ANA) convention. He drove from Seattle to Boston and back in a 1949 Ford, which he had bought for $25.

After attending the University of Washington, he opened Rare Coin Galleries of Seattle on his 21st birthday in May 1963. The operation moved to Issaquah several years ago where it became Gene L. Henry, Inc., Coins.

Henry produced the very first TV show about coins in 1966-67 entitled "Loose Change," and believed that it would have been a success if the show had not been scheduled opposite ABC's very popular "Wide World of Sports" on Saturday afternoons.

He was a member of the ANA since 1960, holding life membership number 522, and was a member of the prestigious Professional Numismatists Guild since 1968, being member 171. He was a founding member of the Silver Dollar Roundtable and a member of the Society of Silver Dollar Collectors.

He was a contributor to the Guide Book of US Coins (the "Red Book") and the Handbook of US Coins (the "Blue Book") since 1968.

Henry was the largest volume rare coin dealer in the Pacific Northwest, and had been for many years.

He has never been married and has no children. His long-time companion, Carole Kupp, said plans for a memorial service are pending.

WaterSport

I am proud to say my 1918 S Lincoln Cent was purchased from Gene a few years Back - RIP.

WS

lostincoins

A great loss to everyone who knew him and to everyone in the hobby even if not personally known.

WTCG

Thanks for posting this.

PonyExpress8

My condolences to Carole and family. Gene was a great resource for a lot of us and will be missed.

kaz

I'm very sorry to hear of the passing of Mr. Henry, another fine person and numismatist I will never have the opportunity to meet. My condolences to his loved ones and friends. I am sure that those at the scene of his collapse did all they could to save him.

While I do not know the exact cause of his demise, it fits the picture of a sudden cardiac arrest, occurring during or just after vigorous physical activity. The key to rescuing people in this dire situation is prompt application of direct current defibrillation, preferably from a nearby automated electronic defibrillator (AED), applied by a bystander. I urge all of you to take a course from the Red Cross in Basic Life Supprt (BLS) which includes instruction in the use of AED's. Many coin shows take place in venues where AED's are nearby. The next time you are at a show, take note of the location of the AED in case someone has a sudden collapse. The devices themselves are very easy to apply and activate but it is a good idea to be familiar with them beforehand.

ThePennyLady

Thanks John for posting this and Logan for writing it. Aside from the very knowledgable and admired numismatist that Gene was, he was such a colorful person with a very lovable mischeivious personality. I will miss him vey much.

HeritageGreg

http://www.coinworld.com/news/Seattle-coin-dealer-Gene-Henry-dies-at-72.all.html

The above link to an interview I gave Coin World last week pretty much sums it up. All I can add here is that at the ANA Show last month I attended the PNG Dinner to receive my 25 year member award (they give you an award when you pay dues for 25 years). When I walked into the pre-dinner gathering, Gene was the first person I saw. For some unexplained reason that I am so grateful for today, I spent the entire 45 minutes before the dinner telling Gene how important he had been in my early years in numismatics, and thanking him for the love and support he had given me along the way, and for all the great times we had shared over the last 40 years. Gene appeared to be in great health, and his mother had lived till 97, and he had planned to do the same, and I naturally assumed he would. I sure miss my friend.

Coin World article:


Coin wholesaler Gene L. Henry, 72, of Issaquah, Wash., died Sept. 23, following a tennis match.


Mr. Henry, owner of Rare Coin Galleries, was a lifelong resident of the Seattle-area and became a coin collector in his early teens. He ran a mail order coin business while in high school.

“His loves in life were Carol [Kupp], coins, and tennis. He left us far too soon, but at least he did so with a tennis racket in his hand. I am a much better person for the friendship he and I enjoyed for the past 40 years, and I give him enormous credit for the numismatist that I am, and the person that I am,” said Greg Rohan, president of Heritage Auctions.

“I met Gene Henry when I was a 12 year old coin dealer just starting out in 1973,” said Rohan. “He was the biggest dealer in the Pacific Northwest, he drove a white Rolls-Royce, and would sweep through a coin show buying coins faster than anyone I had ever seen. He never looked anything up, everything he needed to know about coins was in his head.”

Mr. Henry attended his first American Numismatic Association show in Boston in 1960 and was a life member.

He produced a local television show about coins titled Loose Change in 1966 and 1967.

Mr. Henry was also a longtime member of the Professional Numismatists Guild. Since 1968 he had been a contributor to Whitman Publishing’s Guide Book of U.S. Coins, aka the “Red Book” and the Handbook of U.S. Coins, known as the “Blue Book.”

In a Nov. 29, 2004, Coin World article Mr. Henry recalled, “A couple of people came and pulled the gold teeth out of their mouths, saliva and all,” he said. “When silver hit 15 times face, we bought a batch of Washington quarters that had eight 1932-S [key date coins] in nice condition in one roll.”

Rohan said Henry “always had time for me and really for everyone. He encouraged me, he mentored me, we drove together to coin shows in his red Eldorado, we ate hundreds of meals together, he introduced me to good food and fine wine, and he taught me how to work with people, how to learn about coins, and how to make lifelong friends with those I’d do business with. From 1979-1984 we saw each other almost every day.”

Henry “collected friends like people collect the coins he sold. Gene was considered just about the nicest guy around, with an outsized personality, always ready to tell a joke, and pick up a dinner check,” Rohan said.

Rohan said that, per Mr. Henry’s request, a small family gathering, took place shortly after his death. The date of a celebration of his life will be announced in the next few weeks, Rohan said.

Those wishing to send notes of sympathy should address them to Carol Kupp, Box 2998, Issaquah, WA 98027

Lakesammman

Thanks for posting the obit - learned a few new things about Gene.