Days Of Classic US Commemorative Coins

As a young collector I was able to examine some dollar gold coins of my grandmother. The Lewis and Clark was one of them. I was impressed that it was a two headed coin and she was impressed at the estimated value. She sold it but gave me a 1853 gold dollar.

@nickelsearcher: How about I push back the final installment of the thread one day to Tuesday and give you (and others) Monday to use as a "catch up" day for the posting of any coins/stories that were missed while your service was out.

OK with you?

As long as there are no objections from the membership - I would be able to utilize a final 'catch up' day.

The only official medal in my collection is a chocolate brown surfaces 1915 HK-401. I enjoy the imagery of the Robert Aitken design - a name familiar to commemorative fans not only for the $50 Pan-Pacific pieces but also for his powerful design of the 1921 Missouri Centennial half dollar.

I'll snap a photo to share when I get home from work (Yes - I know it is a Saturday).

David

Day Sixty: Gold Commemoratives / 1921-1930 / Part I


1922 Grant Memorial

Why issued?

1) To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Ulysses S. Grant, graduate of the US Military Academy at West Point, General in Chief of the Union Forces during the US Civil War and 18th President of the United States.
2) To help the Ulysses S. Grant Centenary Memorial Commission raise funds for the building of community centers in Georgetown, Ohio and Bethel, Ohio as memorials to the former President and Civil War General.


Denomination

$1.00


Design // Designer

Obverse:. A right-facing portrait of Grant. A second variety was created via the addition of an incuse star above "Grant." // Laura Gardin Fraser

Reverse: The frame house in Point Pleasant, Ohio in which Grant was born. // Laura Gardin Fraser


Net Mintages:

Plain: 5,000
Star: 5,000


Original Selling Prices:

Plain: $3.00
Star: $3.50


Quick Facts:

Multiple bills calling for Grant Memorial coins were introduced in Congress in 1921. The legislation ultimately approved for the coin authorized a total of 10,000 gold dollars and 250,000 silver 50-cent pieces. A competing bill, however, sought 200,000 gold dollars without any corresponding silver coins.

The design used for the gold dollar is the same design used for its silver 50-cent counterpart (with the appropriate change in denomination).


Here are images of the coins, courtesy of Heritage Auctions:










Day Sixty: Gold Commemoratives / 1921-1930 / Part II


1926 American Independence Sesquicentennial

Why issued?

1) To commemorate the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
2) To help raise funds for the Sesquicentennial Exhibition Association to support its staging of the 1926 International Exposition held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.


Denomination

$2.50


Design // Designer

Obverse:. Liberty standing on a globe with the Torch of Freedom in her right hand and a scroll representative of the Declaration of Independence in her left. // John R. Sinnock

Reverse: Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. // John R. Sinnock


Net Mintage:

46,019


Original Selling Prices:

$4.00


Quick Facts:

The original proposal for the American Independence coinage called for 500,000 gold $1.50 coins and one million silver half dollars. Before the bill became law, the gold denomination was changed to the more traditional $2.50 and its maximum mintage reduced to 200,000.

The 1926 gold quarter eagle was the last gold commemorative coin of the classic era.


Here are images of the coin, courtesy of Heritage Auctions:






I've also included my example housed in a custom holder:

Day Sixty-One: Catch Up Day

One last day to post the coin(s) that you didn't get the chance to share during its moment in the "Days of" sun.

Show us what we've missed!

My contribution today is a coin that I collect as part of my classic commemorative set but one that not all collectors of the series view as a legitimate member. For that reason, I didn't give it a "day" to itself!


1932 George Washington Birth Bicentennial

Why issued?

To commemorate the 200th anniversary of the birth of George Washington.


Design // Designer

Obverse:. Left-facing portrait of George Washington based on the bust sculpted by the French sculptor Jean-Antoine Houdon. // John Flanagan

Reverse: An American (Bald) Eagle with outstretched wings perched on a bundle of arrows; two intertwined olive branches anchor the design. // John Flanagan


Net Mintage:

1932: 5,404,000
1932-D: 436,800
1932-S: 408,000


Original Selling Prices:

1932: $0.25
1932-D: $0.25
1932-S: $0.25


Quick Facts:

The legislation authorizing the Washington quarter specified that is was to be issued in 1932 to commemorate Washington's birth and then continue on as the standard US 25-cent piece in circulation.

Multiple commemorative coinage bills to honor Washington were introduced in Congress. One called for a $3.00 gold coin, while another proposed design changes for the 10-cent, 25-cent and 50-cent coins. At the suggestion of the Treasury, a bill calling for a new quarter was introduced and ultimately approved.

The George Washington Bicentennial Commission held an open design competition for its commemorative medal. The contest rules specified that the Houdon bust of Washington should be used as the basis for Washington's portrait in all submitted designs.

The designs submitted by Laura Gardin Fraser won the medal competition and were also the choice of the Fine Arts Commission for the new quarter. The Mint/Treasury held a separate competition, however, and Treasury Secretary Andrew Mellon selected the designs of John Flanagan over Fraser's.

Fraser's designs finally appeared in 1999 on the gold half eagle issued to mark the 200th anniversary of Washington's death.


Here's a link to a previous post I did about the "Washington" commemorative quarter: https://goccf.com/t/125621#1096311


Here are images of my raw coin...someday I will submit it to PCGS to have it graded/encapsulated. Note: The coin is a lustrous example that looks totally washed out here due to it being scanned vs. imaged via a camera.

This reply was originally intended to post on Wild Card Wednesday 11/19 .... alas my internet service crashed at that time.

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The contribution for today's Wild Card Wednesday will be my experiences pursuing the theme of circulated classic silver commemorative ... in hopes that it might inform you ... and perhaps even perhaps inspire a similar pursuit someday.

Circulated versus MS Commemoratives

I have collected both type sets ... well ... 99% of both type sets. Still need an honestly circulated York County.

Very proud of my current MS silver commemorative type set - it is a set that has taken me many years and significant financial investment to acquire.

To brag on it just for a bit ... 49 of the 50 coins are PCGS/CAC certified (searching for a Hawaiian MS65/CAC upgrade) and the set is currently ranked #21 in the PCGS set registry.

The MS coins bring me great joy to view and tremendous collecting satisfaction - no issues at all with the MS set pursuit.

It is not - however - my commemorative collecting passion.

Consider the following logic ...

There are many coins in my MS set that will never be upgraded - they fully meet my needs/aesthetic while also recognizing the practical reality that ... in many cases ... should a 'better' coin even become available it would likely be prohibitively expensive.

Consider as well the fact that collectors have been searching the available raw MS commemorative for many years - and rightfully claiming as prizes the top pop certified MS coins.

I consider it highly unlikely that an MS69 Vancouver half is waiting out there somewhere to be 'discovered' ...

Therein lies my rub with the MS coins - pursuit of the MS coins generally lacks the potential for a world-class raw find - minimizing the thrill of the numismatic treasure hunt.

I am a treasure hunter by nature ... always enjoying pursuing the unusual finds. Walks in the woods looking for cool stuff - walks through the bourse looking for cool coins.

I'll never hold out hope to find that MS69 Vancouver half raw - but I can (and do) hold hope to find the only FR02 Vancouver raw!

Currently at PCGS for the wizards views -

1925 Fort Vancouver Centennial Half Dollar - Raw (FR02)



Therein lies the special joy (for me) of pursuing the circulated classic silver commemorative series - a never ending numismatic treasure hunt for these tremendous coins .... overlooked by many - a pursuit that will never end and the thrill of the hunt that will continue forever.

Contrast that with MS coins that I mostly never expect to upgrade and except for a handful am not not actively search for.

Not a day goes by when I do not invest some time searching for these coins in honestly circulated state.

Circulated Commemorative Pursuit for Todays Collector

For me ... there is a special joy with holding the circulated examples from this tremendous set. The knowledge that they were not intended for circulation use conjures great stories of 'how they came to be'.

Pursuit of this set requires patience and dedication to the hunt - the very reason the pursuit is so appealing to me.

There are five primary considerations for today's collector of circulated classic commemorative - discussed below:

Market Availability

During an earlier post in this thread, I suggested that the 50-coin silver commemorative type set could be broadly thought of to have occurred in three distinct eras.

Current market availability of circulated examples fits well into that model.

Pre-Depression era (1892 - 1928). This era of silver commemorative contributed 20 type coins (plus the Norse medal). With the notable exceptions of the Fort Vancouver and Hawaiian issues, all of these coins are readily available today in honestly circulated state.

I am confident that an interested modern collector could acquire the 18 'common' circulated coins from this era within a few months of dedicated searching.

Commemorative Craze era (1934 - 1938). This era contributed an astonishing 27 silver type coins in only 4 years - the abuses of which conspired to essentially end the classic series.

With only a few exceptions (Texas, Long Island and Bay Bridge) circulated examples of these coins are exceedingly difficult to find today.

Many of the coins appear only once every few years - if at all.

This era contains the five stoppers that I discussed during their respective days. These are extremely rare coins that in my judgment might never come available over a collector's lifetime.

Post-Craze era (1946 - 1954). The 3 silver commemorative type coins from this era are readily available today in circulated state and can be thought of analogous to the Pre-Depression era in terms of market availability.

Surface Condition

A sad fact of life for the modern collector of these coins in honestly circulated state is that many of the examples - once located - are not honestly circulated.

Cleaning and damage have rendered a large portion of the surviving examples un-certifiable - they will receive a details grade at any reputable TPG.

I set the personal standard for my set that all the circulated coins need to be in PCGS problem free holders - not because of any special endearment to PCGS ... I did this in response to the challenge of maintain a 'clean' collection in the face of so many 'details' coins.

Imagine the frustration of finally locating a very rare circulated example - then to have your collecting hopes dashed by the realization that the coin had been abused by a prior owner.

Such is the state of affairs for the modern collector of these coins in honestly circulated state.

PCGS Grading Variability

I know - it's easy and convenient to bash the TPG's.

In the specific case of their judgment relative to assigning a technical grade to these seldom seen circulated coins - I have ample evidence from many occasions that the results are very inconsistent.

I can only reason that many of these coins are so rarely submitted that the TPG institutional knowledge to consistently assign grades is lacking.

Consider the following case study - I am not making this up!

1935 Arkansas Centennial Half Dollar - PCGS (Revealed Below)



I purchased the coin raw from an ebay auction. Once in hand need to go through the checklist - authentic? (check) - original surfaces? (check) - rare coin? (check).

Assign my own likely technical grade based on my experience - I thought F12/F15.

Off to the wizards it goes - answer was PCGS VF25. What?

Crack out - off the wizards it goes again - answer was PCGS VF20. What?

Crack out - off to the wizards it goes again - answer was PCGS VF30. WHAT?

Crack out - off to the wizards it goes again. The coin is finally in a proper PCGS F15 holder.

That is time consuming, expensive and frustrating - and I have had to do this dance with the PCGS wizards on many coins in the set that they simply did not get right.

Then - you need to take the time to send back all those 'wrong' labels to keep the population report straight.

Price

Circulated examples of the 'common' silver commemorative in the VF/XF range can certainly be acquired for lower cost than their respective MS brethren.

There are many good reasons to acquire these coins - eye appeal being a primary motivator for many. An honestly circulated XF range coin with circulation cameo surfaces is a stunning addition to any set - at an affordable price point for 7070 use or other collecting interests.

commems visually stunning XF45 Roanoke Island is such an example (though not a 'common' circulated commemorative) - I would say the same regarding HONDO outstanding XF45 (ex PCGS) Long Island.

However - that pricing reality does not apply to the truly cherished lowball coins when they come available.

There are enough collectors dedicated to this circulated series that an inverse pricing model applies at true lowball grade.

I can only imagine the bidding interest if a PCGS AG03 Spanish Trail were to be found, certified and then made available on say Heritage (such a beast does not exist BTW). The coin would surely hammer above MS66 greysheet price.

Collector Camaraderie

Enjoyment of the numismatic hobby is greatly enhanced when there are opportunities to interact with other collectors who are journeying on the same niche path.

There is a small but dedicated set of collectors who are passionate for these coins - and we maintain regular contact amongst ourselves ... cheering the occasional finds and generally being supportive of each other.

There are occasional bidding wars amongst ourselves for coins made publically available ... but once the auction ends we maintain a mutual respect for each other and carry on.

I am appreciative of their friendship and time spent interacting during the long dry spells that are inevitable during this joyous and never ending 'quest'.

David

Alto the 1982 Washington Half is considered part of the modern commemoratives I have it housed in my Whittman album next in line of the continuing issues. I include it as it is coined in silver and all but one of the succeeding halves are in a clad composition.