Options
Post What You Know About: Early Commemoratives - Pictures & Information
poorguy
Posts: 4,317 ✭
Here's a good way to consolidate information into a single thread about areas of U.S. Coins.
Contribute knowledge about Early Commemoratives. I would encourage others to start threads on areas they have a particular interest in.
Here's my contribution.
Maine Commemorative. Designed by Anthony de Francisci, who also designed the Peace Dollar. A mintage of 50,028 coins was reported by the mint. They were all struck at the Philadelphia mint.
The Maine Commemorative was minted to celebrate the admission of Maine into the Union. By 1623, both the French and English had settled in Maine. By 1628 it had come under the control of Massachusetts. In March 1820, Maine became the 23rd state in the Union.
The design of the coin was by an unknown Maine artist. The obverse shows the state arms. At the top is a blazing star with the state motto: DIRIGO meaning "I lead". Under that is a pine tree and a moose. On either side are two men. One man, holding a scythe, represents agriculture. The other man, with an anchor, represents commerce. The reverse, in keeping with the state arms, has a pine wreath with LIBERTY at the top, surrounding MAINE CENTENNIAL and the date.
The commemorative half dollar was approved to be minted in May 1920. The total amount that could be coined was 100,000. Only 50,000 were struck with 28 for assay. There were none melted.
The coins were sold for $1 and were sold through the state treasurer. They were packaged in paper coin envelopes.
Contribute knowledge about Early Commemoratives. I would encourage others to start threads on areas they have a particular interest in.
Here's my contribution.
Maine Commemorative. Designed by Anthony de Francisci, who also designed the Peace Dollar. A mintage of 50,028 coins was reported by the mint. They were all struck at the Philadelphia mint.
The Maine Commemorative was minted to celebrate the admission of Maine into the Union. By 1623, both the French and English had settled in Maine. By 1628 it had come under the control of Massachusetts. In March 1820, Maine became the 23rd state in the Union.
The design of the coin was by an unknown Maine artist. The obverse shows the state arms. At the top is a blazing star with the state motto: DIRIGO meaning "I lead". Under that is a pine tree and a moose. On either side are two men. One man, holding a scythe, represents agriculture. The other man, with an anchor, represents commerce. The reverse, in keeping with the state arms, has a pine wreath with LIBERTY at the top, surrounding MAINE CENTENNIAL and the date.
The commemorative half dollar was approved to be minted in May 1920. The total amount that could be coined was 100,000. Only 50,000 were struck with 28 for assay. There were none melted.
The coins were sold for $1 and were sold through the state treasurer. They were packaged in paper coin envelopes.
Brandon Kelley - ANA - 972.746.9193 - http://www.bestofyesterdaycollectibles.com
0
Comments
In order "to make the different dates more distinctive and desireable, the sponsors of the Oregon Trail coins tried giving a name to each issue. These names were not government designated and were later discontinued and are by now nearly forgotten. Coins so designated are given here only as a matter of record: 1926 - Ezra Meeker coin; 1928- Jedediah Smith coin; 1933 D -Century of Progress Exposition coin; 1934 D - Fort Hall, Fort Laramie abd Jason Lee coin; 1936 S- Whitman Mission coin. Later mintages bore no special designation."
That is what I love about commemoratives - Each issue is a work of art and history lesson!
Mike
<< <i>The design was submitted by the Honorable John A. Peters, in behalf of the officials having charge the Maine Centennial. >>
This material can be found in An Illustrated History of US Commemorative Coinage by Don Taxay. It is long out of print, but I happen to own the original Bowers and Ruddy Galleries copy.
In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson
Lincoln (Illinois Centennial) Commemorative: Designed by George T. Morgan and John R. Sinnock. Mintage 100,058. Struck in Philadelphia.
The Illinois Commemorative was made to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the statehood of Illinois. Early on, the French set up settlements and outposts in the area. France later ceded Illinois to England under the Treaty of Paris in 1763. Various settlers came to Illionis from eastern colonies looking for farmland. The land was captured from British during the American Revolution. It became part of Indiana Territory. It became a separate territory in 1809, and became a state in 1818.
This commemorative actually had two designers, George T. Morgan for the obverse, and John R. Sinnock for the reverse. The obverse shows a side portrait of a young Lincoln based on the statue by Andrew O'Connor created for the centennial. The reverse shows an eagle, with it's back toward the sun, so that it is facing west. It has a ribbon in it's mouth with the state motto: STATE SOVEREIGNTY NATIONAL UNION.
100,000 commemoratives were approved to be minted in 1918. 100,058 coins were minted in Philadelpha, the 58 for assay pices. They were available through the Springfield Chamber of Commerce and other outlets. None were melted.
The cost of each coin was $1. There was no official packaging.
Classic Commems
Could I use a borrowed picture?
-Amanda
I'm a YN working on a type set!
My Buffalo Nickel Website Home of the Quirky Buffaloes Collection!
Proud member of the CUFYNA
The series was minted from 1951 to 1954. There are twelve coins in the series--each mint (Philly, Den, SF) producing a coin each year of production.
52-P is by far the most common date, with a mintage in the millions. As such it is most often used as a type coin. The next most available date is the 53-S. Interesting, the 51-P is common, with over 110,000 minted--but is one of the most difficult commemoratives to find in true gem grades.
The toughest coins to find nice are the D mints. The 53-D is the most coveted, followed by the 52-D and 54-D, which are almost a toss up in difficulty. I lean to the 52-D with a mintage of 8,006 over the 54-D with it's mintage of 12,006.
The 52-S is the most underrated date IMO. Total mintage of 8,006--in relation to it's price... well, it' a deal. Also underrated are the 53-P and 54-P. Almost every 54-P I have seen comes with light die polish marks on the reverse under the map of the USA.
About toning: the 52-P and 53-S are frequently found with wild or colorful toning. They are also the most played with by doctors, because they are cheap and abundant. Be careful. The rest can come with color, but it's not typical. D mints don't usually tone with vivid color and spectacular eye appeal. Usually. There are exceptions to every rule.
Perhaps one of the greatest joys of all is finding a matching, original Carver P, D, S set. Especially with superior eye appeal. These sets are truly scarce. And like a lot of things numismatic these days with originality, they seem to be getting harder and harder to come across.
These are interesting coins, that honor two great Americans. The marketing was shady, the designs pretty much universally hated--but, those are other stories.
Image by RussView--
Image by RussView
Sean Reynolds
"Keep in mind that most of what passes as numismatic information is no more than tested opinion at best, and marketing blather at worst. However, I try to choose my words carefully, since I know that you guys are always watching." - Joe O'Connor
The Antietam Commemorative Half Dollar commemorates the Battle of Antietam. More men were killed or wounded at Antietam on September 17, 1862, than on any other single day of the Civil War. Federal losses were 12,410, Confederate losses 10,700.
<< <i>I want to do Gettysburg.
Could I use a borrowed picture?
-Amanda >>
It's not the one you were thinking of, Amanda, but you are welcome to use mine until Dizzy shows up.
Jim
<< <i>I want to do Gettysburg.
Could I use a borrowed picture?
-Amanda >>
Here you go.
Thanks, Jim and Brandon!
The Battle of Gettysburg was fought over three days in the beginning of July in 1863. The Union Army was pursuing the Confederates up through Maryland into Southern Pennsylvania.
The superior force and arms belonged to the Union, but the South would put up a terrific struggle in what some would call a last-ditch attempt.
On the first day, July 1st, Union General John Buford arrived in Gettysburg with his cavalry brigade to maintain the heights beyond town for the Union, as he had earlier witnessed Confederate Troops in the area.
He was able to hold off General Heath's division for several assaults when finally infantry suppourt arrived from General Reynolds. Unfortunately, General Reynolds was killed shortly after the fighting started.
On the second day, most of the Union Army was in town deployed on Seminary Ridge with their line in the form of a fish hook. The hook was on top of two round hills-- Little Round Top and Big Round Top. Defending the extreme left flank was Colonel Joshua Chamberlain, the commander of the 20th Maine Regiment of Volunteers. They held back wave after wave of would-be flankers, down to the last bit of their ammunition! As a last resort, Col. Chamberlain ordered a bayonet charge down the hill, arguably saving the flank and the entire battle. He was later awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for this act of heroism.
The third day dawned, and it looked bleak for the Confederacy. General Lee had great faith in his troops, though, and ordered his second in command General James Longstreet to organize his troops for one last charge.
General Longstreet knew in his heart the attack would fail, yet he knew he could not go against General Lee's orders. He knew he would probably never again see the majority of the young men he was now sending across the field.
The Confederate soldiers marched more than a mile across open ground to reach the Union lines. Very few made it and even fewer made it back to Confederate lines. This was perhaps the final blow that sent the Confederacy on it's downward spiral.
The Gettysburg Commemorative Half Dollar was authorized by an act of June 16th 1936. The date on the coin is 1936, but it also says 75th Anniversary 1863-1938 on the reverse side.
The models for the coin were prepared by Frank Vittor. The obverse has a Union and Confederate Soldier and the phrase "Blue and Gray Reunion." The reverse has a double bladed fasces separating two shields representing the Union and Confederate flags.
The Blue and Gray Reunion of 1938 in Gettysburg coincided with the dedication of the Eternal Light Peace Memorial.
I hope that wasn't too boring.
-Amanda
I'm a YN working on a type set!
My Buffalo Nickel Website Home of the Quirky Buffaloes Collection!
Proud member of the CUFYNA
<< <i>Wooooowwww! Amanda. That was superb! Great information. Did you take those pictures yourself?
Thanks.
I could go into a lot more depth, but that's just a general overview.
-Amanda
I'm a YN working on a type set!
My Buffalo Nickel Website Home of the Quirky Buffaloes Collection!
Proud member of the CUFYNA
<< <i>I hope that wasn't too boring. >>
Boring? No way, that was a great post. History is never boring. That is why most of us collect in the first place.
It is from Hawaii
P.s. Thanks Brandon, your such a love
and another
Oops, is it rude to ask?...If so ignore
<< <i>See this is where I would get completley screwed without a grading service. Mine is a 66 and I cant see the difference.
An AU58 can sometimes appear cleaner (free of contact marks) than a nice uncirculated example but is AU because of circulation rub on the high points. Additionally, the luster will be usually affected if the coin is AU and will not look as dazzling as a true MS coin.
<< <i>It is from Hawaii >>
Nice coin, Tim. And it is from Hawaii by way of the Philadelphia mint.
A Hawaiian in 66... you are full of surprises.
Don
<< <i>I hope that wasn't too boring.
-Amanda >>
My great great great grandfather was captured at Gettysburg and imprisoned at Camp Lookout Maryland until the end of the war, when he took the oath. He then walked back to his home in Camden South Carolina. My grandmother who is at this moment 99 years old, remembers going to his house as a small child for visits.
Thanks Amanda, you brought a tear to my eye
Mark
The Isabella quarter was sold at the Columbian Exposition at $1.00 each as a fundraiser for the Board of Lady Managers of the fair. They were sold in numbered envelopes although I have never seen one. I have only seen two envelopes of the Columbian half dollar. This quarter was designed by Charles Barber. The obverse is a portrait of Queen Isabella(looks more like Christopher Columbus if you ask me) The reverse symbolizes women's industry.
For anyone interested in elongated coins, the Columbian Exposition was the site of the first elongated coins being made. There are about 20 varieties of elongated coins known from the fair. However, none of the machinery or tools to make the coins are accounted for.
BTW, beautiful coin Coockney.
An Historical Reference from the NGC PHOTO PROOF Series
Pilgrim Tercentenary Half Dollar
Commemorative coins were still something of a novelty in 1920 when Congress authorized the coining of half dollars to celebrate the three-hundredth anniversary of the arrival of the Pilgrims. Only eight commemorative coin programs had gone before. Some of these included multiple denominations, while a few even offered two different dates of the same design. These multi-date offerings usually resulted from bad timing on the part of the authorizing commissions. The Pilgrim Tercentenary half dollar of 1920-21, however, was the first issue coined with more than one date for the sole purpose of achieving repeat sales. It set an alarming precedent for future programs, since this gimmick would be repeated numerous times, much to the irritation of collectors.
This kind of scheming contrasts sharply with the Pilgrims themselves, who rejected material wealth, along with ostentatious display and gregarious behavior. It was their rejection of the Church of England, however, that earned them the title Separatists, as well as the wrath of Britain's King James I. Forced to flee to Holland, their price of freedom proved to be limited opportunities and a growing loss of their English culture in exchange for mere tolerance by the Dutch. Holland, certainly, was not the refuge they sought. With backing from a group of English investors hoping to reap profits in the New World, the Pilgrims sailed westward in the late summer of 1620, landing on November 11 at a place they named Provincetown Bay, on what would ultimately be called Cape Cod. With winter approaching, they quickly settled on a site for their colony, christening it Plymouth after their departure point from England.
Nearly starving that first year, only their instruction by natives in the planting of corn enabled the colonists to carry on. The next several summers brought new arrivals, and the Plymouth Colony thrived. Not everyone was a Separatist, however, and those who couldn't stand the severity of that lifestyle soon formed neighboring communities. The Pilgrim Separatists ultimately became a minority of the population, and the Plymouth Colony was absorbed into the greater Colony of Massachusetts in 1691.
The summer of 1920 witnessed many celebrations throughout New England marking the 300th anniversary of the Pilgrims' arrival. Among the souvenir items planned was a commemorative half dollar, the proceeds from which would be used to fund some of these events. The bill as originally read called for the minting of half a million pieces! Assured that this was a misprint, Congress instead approved a still-generous mintage of 300,000. The legislation was not passed until May 12, however: all those concerned would have to act quickly to get the coins into production.
Boston sculptor Cyrus E. Dallin was selected by the Tercentenary Commission to prepare models showing a portrait of Plymouth Colony Governor William Bradford and the Pilgrim's ship, the Mayflower, on which they made their historic journey in 1620. Dallin ran afoul of the Commission of Fine Arts' sculptor member, James Earle Fraser of Buffalo nickel fame, who found fault with his execution of the inscriptions: "Altogether the design for the Pilgrim fifty cent coin is good. The part that seems to me to need most attention if there is time is the lettering." Of course, there wasn't time to correct this, and the Fine Arts Commission's decision to not render a verdict on Dallin's models prompted the Treasury Department to simply disregard their comments and proceed with the preparation of dies. In October of 1920 a total of 200,112 Pilgrim halves were struck at the Philadelphia Mint, the odd 112 pieces being reserved for assay and later destroyed. The coins were first offered for sale at $1 apiece in November. Distribution was handled by the Shawmut National Bank of Boston and the coins were available at every bank in Boston and Plymouth. Although there was no official packaging, two types of boxes were privately produced. One was gold with a green coin sleeve inside, and was imprinted with PEOPLE’S SAVINGS BANK, WORCHESTER, MASS. The other, a white box with a circular coin slot, was imprinted with SOCIETY OF COLONIAL WARS, IN THE STATE OF RHODE ISLAND AND PROVIDENCE PLANTATIONS. Both of these are quite valuable today.
The obverse of the Pilgrim Tercentenary half dollar portrays a left-facing, half-length figure of William Bradford, the second governor of the Plymouth Colony. He assumed this role in 1621 and was re-elected thirty times! The image is fanciful, as no actual portrait of him exists. He holds in his left arm what is most likely the Bible, but what has also been identified as his own book History of Plimmoth Plantation. Behind his portrait is the motto IN GOD WE TRUST, while the legends UNITED STATES OF AMERICA and PILGRIM HALF DOLLAR are arranged peripherally, separated by stars. Dallin's incuse initial D appears below Bradford's elbow. The reverse is dominated by a three-quarters view of the Mayflower sailing on rough seas. Its rigging is erroneous, the forward jibsail being of a type not utilized as early as 1620. The inscription PILGRIM TERCENTENARY CELEBRATION is arranged peripherally. Separated from it by stars are the dual dates 1620—1920.
Coming out so late in the year, much of the enthusiasm which might have greeted these coins during the summer months had already dissipated. Many thousands remained unsold as the town of Plymouth, Massachusetts prepared for additional commemorative activities during 1921. With sales resuming, but at a much slower pace, something was needed to prompt additional buyers or, better still, repeat buyers. As only 200,000 coins had been struck from the authorized figure of 300,000, the Tercentenary Commission requested that the remaining balance be minted with the date 1921. That date was added in small figures to the obverse field, and the additional 100,000 halves were minted in July of that year. Although there were some collectors who responded with repeat orders, the severe economic recession of 1921-22 worked against these coins becoming a financial bonanza for the Commission. Conceding that this issue had run its course, they returned to the mint for melting some 48,000 halves dated 1920 and 80,000 of the 1921 striking. This left net mintages of 152,000 for 1920 and just 20,000 for 1921.
As the 1920 coin was sold primarily to the general public, it is often encountered with ugly toning or harshly cleaned. It is readily available in grades up through MS-65 but quite scarce above that level. Much of the 1921 issue went directly to dealers and speculators, so in spite of its lower mintage, a larger proportion of high-grade survivors exists. In grades of MS-64 and higher, a few hundred have been certified. Wear on Pilgrim halves appears first on Bradford's cheekbone and the hair above his ear; on the reverse, check the crow's nest and stern of the Mayflower.
A few of the 1921 Pilgrim halves will show die-clash marks but this feature is more commonly seen on the 1920 issue, often accompanied by die striations. Two matte proofs are known of the 1920 coinage, one of these from the estate of Mint engraver John R. Sinnock, while a single 1921 in matte proof is also rumored to exist.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Diameter: 30.6 millimeters
Weight: 12.5 grams
Composition: .900 silver, .100 copper
Edge: Reeded
Net Weight: .36169 ounce pure silver
Here's mine. MS66
Here's mine - MS66
Years Issued: 1900
Designer: Charles E. Barber
Mintage: 36,026
Mint: Philadelphia
Struck to raise funds for the erection of a statue of Lafayette in Paris, France in connection with the 1900 Paris Exposition. The statue commemorates General Lafayette, who in 1777, paid French troops to accompany him to America to help aid the Colonists. The obverse features General Lafayette and George Washington. The reverse depicts the statue sculpted by Paul Wayland Bartlett. The version of the statue depicted on the coin is slightly different than the statue that was erected.
The Lafayette dollar bears the 1900 date but all were struck on the 14th of December in 1899. The Paris Exposition took place in 1900 for which the coins were meant to be distributed therefore the coin bears the date 1900 instead of the actual year they were produced. Washington is also depicted for the first time on a coin available for public sale.
The coins were not widely sold to coin collectors but were originally issued for $2 each. Many of the pieces made it into circulation and were accepted which would explain the large number of them in XF-AU grades. Around 36,000 of the coins were sold out of the 50,000 that were produced. The remaining 14,000 were sent to the U.S. Treasury where they were stored in cloth bags of 1,000 each in the same vaults that were used to store currency. Sometime in 1945, the pieces were converted into silver bullion.
The coins were originally shipped out in large manila enveloped bearing return address of "OFFICE OF COMMISSIONER-GENERAL FOR THE UNITED STATES TO THE PARIS EXPOSITION OF 1900. LAFAYETTE MEMORIAL COMMISSION. CHIGAGO. A certification of the number of Lafayette dollars contained in the envelope accompanied the coins.
"The Huguenot-Walloon New Netherland Commision... promoted this as an undercover fund-raiser for the Federal Council of Churches of Christ in America, blatantly violating the First Amendment principle of seperation of church and state. ... Allegedly, the events commemorated are the arrival of 110 Lowlands Huguenots (Calvinists) aboard the Nieuw Nederlandt on the Hudson River in upstate New York, and other Dutch Calvinists settlements in New York and New Jersey, 1624-1924."
Here's a nice and quick reference.