The 63 Days Of Coins Of The Old West (Carson City & San Francisco)!!

I will have to take some pictures this afternoon.

For me starting tomorrow I will be able to start posting more
coins .. I am thinking others will too.

And now for something slightly different. An 1874 patent "Comstock" pattern Vanderslice sterling spoon. There were several silversmiths in San Francisco making flatware and hollowware. Shreve was the last, closing in the 1960's.



The silver used in this spoon probably came from the Cerro Gordo District rather than the Comstock. Lead/silver bars were shipped to San Francisco for refining, up until about 1880, and the byproduct silver was the cheapest source.

1875-CC quarter

Here's an 1875-CC half dollar that was most likely counterstamped within a year after being struck. The PARISIAN VARIETIES "girlie show" was located at the corner of 16th Street and Broadway in NY City. Here are the notes from my database:

THIS BURLESQUE THEATRE TROUPE BOASTED "FIFTY HANDSOME YOUNG LADIES" IN ITS NEWSPAPER ADS. THEIR REVUE INCLUDED "LEGS ON THE BRAIN" AND "SATAN'S VENUE." MOST OF THESE STAMPS ARE UPON HALF DOLLARS WHICH WAS LIKELY THE PRICE OF ADMISSION. IN "GOTHAM: A HISTORY OF NY CITY TO 1898" IT SAYS THAT THE NAME OF ROBINSON HALL WAS CHANGED TO PARISIAN VARIETIES AFTER 1874, WHEREIN GIRLS WOULD DANCE THE CAN-CAN. THE SHOW CLOSED IN 1876. THIS VICTORIAN ERA SHOW WAS RISQUE' IN ITS DAY; THEN FOLLOWED, THE ROCKETTES AT THE RADIO CITY MUSIC HALL!









Brunk listed over a dozen specimens in 2003, and I'd venture a guess that more than double that number exists. Brunk's catalog number is P-125. The latest dated host coin is 1876, being the year that the show closed.

It's interesting to contemplate just how this Carson City half managed to travel to the Big Apple within a year or so after being struck. Might a wealthy silver miner have carried it there? When paying the fifty cents price of admission with a dollar, a patron would be given a counterstamped half in change. This memento would then serve to promote word-of-mouth advertising. Quite the ticket, huh?

1875 S 20 Cent

I can finally begin my three-day streak, which still pales in comparison to what most of you are posting.

1875-S 20c

1875 CC Seated Dime




1875 CC Seated Dime

I KNEW 1875 would bring out some coins!!

1875 CC Seated Liberty Half Dollar