The 1949 Truman Inaugural Medal

BillJones

With all the talk about the Truman set, here is a look at the 1949 Truman inaugural medal. Here are pictures of the piece and a write-up for a local club member who had one given to him by a person he knows. Nice examples sell for $200 to $250.




Mintages

Metal Number Minted

Gold 3
Silver 9
Bronze 7,500

Harry S. Truman's surprise victory in the 1948 presidential election prompted more than a million people to attend his inauguration in on January 20, 1949. Part of this intense interest may have been due to the subdued war time ceremony that marked Franklin Roosevelt's fourth inaugural in 1945. Perhaps the people to looking to have a post war celebration. The parade was seven and a half miles long and was accompanied by the fly over of 700 aircraft past the reviewing stand.

For the first time the bronze inaugural medals were made in a large quantity and offered to the crowd at $2.00 each in bronze. Artist C. Paul Jennewein sculpted the obverse which was modeled from life. Jennewein added the phrase F Ad Vivum, "made from life" beside his signature below Truman's bust. Forty-eight stars surround the bust. Thirteen of them are larger than the others.

The reverse reflected design suggestions from Mint Director, Nellie Tayloe Ross. It features a figure of Lady Liberty, wearing a Phrygian cap, indicative of freedom. To her left are figures representing humanity who are yearning to be free. Lady Liberty holds a laurel spray in her left hand indicating that liberty has been victorious.

The three gold medals were given to Harry S. Truman, Nellie Tayloe Ross and Melvin D. Hildreth who was the chairman of inaugural committee. The Truman piece is in his library. The other two pieces are presumably still held by the families of Mrs. Ross and Mr. Hildreth.

The Philadelphia Mint struck the bronze medals. The finish that the mint gave these pieces has not always been stable, and many pieces have acquired unattractive spots and tarnish. Pieces with attractive surfaces are worth a premium.

OperationButter

Thats really nice, thanks for sharing!

Id like a gold one

epcjimi1

Nice.

LanLord

That would have been a far superior design to include in the Truman set than what the mint included.

That medal is downright beautiful

BillJones

<< <i>Thats really nice, thanks for sharing!

Id like a gold one >>



Good luck on getting a gold one. The Truman piece is in his library. As for the rest for the Ross and Hildreth pieces, I have never heard of them coming to market. A silver one would be a major coup.

Just for fun here is my collection of 1948 presidential campaign buttons. The Democratic party divided into three factions, Truman, Henry Walace (ultra liberal) and Strom Thurmond (Southern Democrat and very racist, and YES, THE Strom Thurmond who was a U.S. Senate at 100 years of age.) Nobody thought that Truman had a chance of winning, but he did.

All Truman buttons range from scarce to really tough. The campaign didn't have much money to spend on buttons.

I don't know how this will look, but if anyone is interested in any individual pieces, just ask.

keyman64

jmski52

Bill, you need a newpaper with the "Dewey Wins!" headline for your collection.

MsMorrisine

Great stuff

I wish I had a museum with unlimited money to put items posted on this site.

coinkat

The newspaper was the Chicago Tribune and the headlines was DEWEY DEFEATS TRUMAN

Nice selection of Truman Juggates-

The Wallace with the shadow of FDR also comes in Black which I have seen and owned. I have heard rumors it exists in a reddish color but have never seen one.

Sort of interesting that you have a Stop Stassen pin for the 8th time in the group. Stassen was a serious candidate in 1948 and made a serious blunder during the Oregon primary that pretty much guaranteed Dewey's nomination.

The Strom Thurmond-Fielding Wright material from 1948 is not easy to come by- the campaign item you have pictured is rarely seen

BillJones

I would love to have a Thurmond - Fielding jugate (The presidential - vice presidential candidates side by side on a button), but there less than 10 examples known to the hobby. Prices have been in the $10,000 range. If you want to get into a hobby, and be a big fish at must lower prices, political items are for you.

coinkat

Actually I can't even remember the last time I saw a Thurmond-Wright juggate sell or even what they fetch.

The Wallace pin in the lower left corner also comes in a 3 1/2" which is far more difficult than the standard size. Since we are on the subject of juggates, there is a very unusual and different type for Wallace and Taylor. That is rarely seen but not $10,000. I always liked the same style juggate for Truman/Barkley and Dewey/Warren withe the flag in the background

BillJones

The Wallace - FDR shadow button is scarcer in black than it is in blue. I've never seen or heard of one in a reddish color although perhaps some of Wallace's most far left supporters might have come up with it. Finding any Wallace item that mentions his running mate, Taylor, is very difficult. It is kind of like the old general, Stockdale, who was hard of hearing, who ran with Ross Perot in 1992 and the even more obscure fellow who ran with him in 1996.

The "Stop Stassen for the 8th time" is a joke piece I threw in there because I didn't have a better place to store it. Stassen was a serious candidate in 1948 when he ran for the first time. He was like Bill Bradley was to Al Gore in 2000, Dewey's closest competitor for the nomination. As I remember it he got tripped up on a question about whether or not the Communist Party should be able to operate in The United States legally.

The "Dewey Defeats Truman" newspaper shows up now and then at political shows. I stay away from collectables that take up a lot of space because my wife gets upset enough with the number books I have around the house. That's why I don't collect "3D" items. One last examples I saw was matted in a frame, and the price was $900. There was a cheaper one that was not matted for something like $700. The trouble is newspapers were not made to last, and preservation is a big concern.

The Thurman - Fielding piece is a postcard. It's the only example that I have seen, although I know there has to be others. I bought it from Rex Stark a few years ago at an APIC national convention. APIC national conventions are about a tenth the size of the Baltimore coin show.

BillJones

For those who might wonder about the "Westminster College" piece in the upper right corner, that issued for a forum Harry Truman and Winston Churchill both spoke. That must of been quite a night with the President of the United States and wartime leader of Great Britain on the same stage. During his speech, Churchill used the phrase "Iron Curtain" for the first time in public. This button is scarce, and it is a classic in the political items field. It sells for several hundred dollars.