My/Your Childhood Coin Collecting Recollections

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.

Author	Replies: 4 / Views: 116
howell1018 Pillar of the Community United States 756 Posts	Posted Yesterday 10:07 pm I'm presently 75 years old. Growing up I started collecting when I was about 8 years old (stamps too), Back then in the late 50s everyone started out, of course, with the Whitman penny folders, and back then you could just about fill it up from your parents change short of the 09-S vdb and the 14-d. Of course all the "silver" back then actually was silver. I remember thinking that it couldn't really be actual silver as I didn't think there was enough silver existent to satisfy the needs. My best friend showed me, one morning before school, a find he made in his mom's purse. A 1914-d penny in pretty good shape. We got his RedBook and decided it was worth $50 which was a king's ransom. I lived in Northern California and maybe every 2 or 3 years my parents would travel to Reno to take in a show and do a little gambling. Upon their return they would hand over a couple of Morgan/Peace dollars which were in abundance when you were in Reno. I probably spent them on comics and baseball cards. My family went down to Southern California on vacation one summer. We went to Knott's Berry Farm during a trip where at the time they had a coin shop. I saw a '55 doubled die in one of the display cases and tried to convince my dad to buy it. I don't recall what it was graded, or if it was graded, but I recall it was selling for $300. My dad thought I was nuts. Went to my maternal grandparents home in New Brunswick, NJ one summer. My grandfather was a very gruff guy, and I was surprised when he called me aside to show me a coin he discovered in his "poker jar." He wanted to know what it was worth. It was a Flying Eagle cent in the most god awful condition I ever saw in a coin. I had never seen one in person and got grumpy grandpa to drive me to the local library where I got ahold of a RedBook. I had to tell gramps that he might get a quarter for it (it was severely pitted. I'm talking craters of the moon.) I finally finished my childhood Lincoln collection about a year ago. I don't have the Whitman folder as I transferred my Whitman coins to an H.E. Harris folder which I deemed to be superior. The last coin to be obtained was the 14-d. It didn't go into the folder as it is in a PCGS holder and cost me considerably more than $50. I don't have a 22 plain though, or a 55 doubled die, but I don't count them although I'm actively looking for the 55. Anyone else have similar tales (I know you all do)? Report this Post to the Staff

ijn1944 Bedrock of the Community United States 19373 Posts	Posted Yesterday 10:39 pm Also 'started' in Northern California--the Bay Area. Now and then my parents would let me empty the contents of a large piggy bank onto the floor and dig through the pre-'65 pile--a rather large pile from a kid's perspective. Wheats, a healthy mix of Roosevelt and Mercury silver dimes, Buffalo and Jefferson nickels, and silver Standing Liberty and Washington quarters. Even a tidy stack of Walking Liberty and Franklin halves. Always had to wash my hands afterwards... Loved every minute. Edited by ijn1944 Today 1H 58M ago Report this Post to the Staff
HondoB Bedrock of the Community United States 26557 Posts	Posted Yesterday 10:46 pm Wonderful stories, howell - thank you for sharing them with us! Although a bit younger than you (just turned 64), I can relate to your tales of collecting coins from change. Of course, by the time I began handling money, most of the silver had long since vanished. An occasional one did pop up, with War Nickels being the type I most commonly encountered. And yes, wheaties were quite prevalent in circulation in the late '60s and early '70s, although they became scarcer by the year. I was able to fill quite a bit of my Whitman folder that way, although the coins were generally not much to brag about. The first coin I recall collecting was this 50 Centimes from my parents' penny jar back in the late '60s. It was just the coolest coin that I had ever seen - so old and exotic! I asked them for it and of course they let me have it. To them, it was really nothing - about what a 1980's vintage Chuck E. Cheese or arcade token is today. I've held on to this beauty lo these 50+ years, through multiple moves across the country. I really regret never having asked them how they obtained it. France 50 Centimes 1923 - "penny jar" find Inordinately fascinated by bits of metal with strange markings and figures Report this Post to the Staff
hfjacinto Pillar of the Community United States 7358 Posts	Posted Today 2H 13M ago I've posted the story before: https://goccf.com/t/416711 Basically at In 1976 as a 7 year old my parents emigrated from Portugal to the US. We used to live in a rural town a few kilometers from the beach. We moved to an apartment in an Urban area of NJ. Coming from the beach and having over an acre it was an adjustment moving to a small apartment. One of the neighbors realized I was having a hard time and asked my parents if I was interested in any hobbies. My mom told her I had a coin collection in Portugal. The neighbor proceeds to put together a small collection of US coins including Mercury dimes, Ikes, Wheat Cents, Bison Nickels and some Indian Heads. I was super excited. My dad picked up the Whitman folders so I could start filling them in. As Wheats were still in circulation, I found the majority of the set just from circulation. When I turned 17, I got my license and found a coin chop in a nearby town. Every couple of weeks I picked up the missing wheats and completed the 1941 to 1974 set. All the while working on the 1975 to 2013 and the 1909 to 1940. The 1975 to 2013 was completed in 2014. But the 1909 to 1940 always took a back burner to other important items. After completing the 1975 to 2013, I made a decision to complete the Lincoln Set. I went to several coin shops in the area and found the majority of coins I was missing, but I really didn't want to take apart the sets I started. One of the coin shops had an almost complete set of wheats going from 1917 to 1959 with the majority in BU/red color. I negotiated a fair price and used that set as a seed. Through the years I picked up the missing coins and even the keys. I have also upgraded the early years to what I have now as my master set. My friend Butch (Crazy BO) helped me complete the Lincoln Memorial Set. And with 2019 release of the W Proof and W Reverse Proof, I decided to call the series complete. I picked up a few Proofs to add a pop of shine to the album But that left the 1909 to 1940 Whitman folder still not completed. Last 2 years when I found the missing key's I picked them up. Trying to keep the look of the coins the same (and my wallet not too light) I picked up circulated coins. The 1914 D, I found locally and it was an excellent price (compared to today) The 1931 S popped up on an internet seller I do business with. Price last year was 50% less than today. A fellow collector helped me get the 1909sVDB. So a set that I started with help I finished with help. My Slabbed Dansco 7070 with Gold Page My Slabbed IHC Set My Slabbed 20th Century Type Set Report this Post to the Staff
tdziemia Pillar of the Community United States 7996 Posts	Posted Today 51M ago I'm of the same era. Began collecting a couple of years before silver disappeared from circulation. My dad would do the weekly grocery shopping on his way from work Friday evenings, and dump the change from his pockets; plenty of buffaloes (dates gone even then), mercs, SLQs and walkers; very few IHCs. On the east coast, S mint coins were far harder to come by than Philadelphia or Denver. I never filled that first Lincoln Whitman from pocket change, missing the S mint before 1916 if I recall, in addition to those other few key dates. The elderley barber where my brothers and I were taken sold average circlulated older types to kids at low prices. That was my intro to large cents (and halves!), barber types (of course ) , seated liberty types, Two Cent Pieces (I bought all the easy dates there), Flying Eagle cents. Each year in early December the family trekked to a mall in north Jersey where the Gimbels department store had a stamp and coin section. We were deposited there while the parents shopped, and given a budget used for fishing things from the 25 cent box. Got my first medieval that way, though lacking an internet or a catalog, it took me over 40 years to give it a proper ID (I had it as a French denier tournois, but it was a Crusader States denier). My interest in foreign coins began when my dad handed over a plastic pouch with coins from his WWII deployment. What a story that told! North Africa, Iran, India, Dutch East Indies, Philippines and Japan. Once I had real income from part-time work (age 15), I began hitting mail order dealers for foreign coins. The summer of my older brother's junior year in high school, he traveled to Spain to study, and did a side trip to Morocco. He remembered his little brother and brought back some crusty 18th century maravedis and a Moroccan dirham from a flea market. What treasures! Much of that collection has been sold off. In adulthood, my focus shifted to European medievals. But I still have a few things from that barber, most of the coins from my dad's WWII service and those coins my brother brought back. Report this Post to the Staff
	Replies: 4 / Views: 116

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.

All Forums Category: General Numismatic Forums Forum: Main Coin Forum

Silver Gold Bull US is the United States leading bullion dealer. We deliver gold coins, gold bars, silver coins, silver bars and precious metals to your door. Order today!

The First Dollar, your premier source for bullion and rare coins. See our bullion list on the site and the coin inventory on ebay.

View Last 100 New Topics

View Last 100 Active Topics

Disclaimer: While a tremendous amount of effort goes into ensuring the accuracy of the information contained in this site, Coin Community assumes no liability for errors. Copyright 2005 - 2026 Coin Community Family- all rights reserved worldwide. Use of any images or content on this website without prior written permission of Coin Community or the original lender is strictly prohibited.
Contact Us | Advertise Here | Privacy Policy / Terms of Use

Coin Community Forum

It took 0.32 seconds to rattle this change.