| Author |
 Replies: 16 / Views: 2,685 |
|
Valued Member
United States
186 Posts |
I'm especially curious about during the days of key dates. I have not lived in a time when a key date circulating coin was produced. But I am really curious if you could actually find them. For example, living in 1917, how hard would it be to find a 1916 Standing Liberty quarter? Did they sometimes circulate like normal coins or did they get snatched as soon as they were seen? Were they valuable? It's really interesting to think about how these days a few months after the new year it's pretty easy to find newly dated coins. I wonder if people could hit jackpots by finding bags of fresh rare coins? |
|
|
|
Bedrock of the Community
Australia
21786 Posts |
I was looking for certain dates with freshly issued coins when I was a kid. That was more than 50 years ago.
From my experience, key dates have always been very hard to find in circulation.
If you want a key date coin, then buy it indirectly from some anonymous person who has taken it from circulation.
Other collectors or dealers will most probably be your source for acquisition.
If you want a key date coin that is more than 100 years old, such a coin will be very hard to find under most circumstances, unless you are prepared to pay a lot of money, especially for examples in top condition. Luck and opportunity will have a big part to play in the acquisition.
Listed prices for key dates in superior condition confirm this.
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
3343 Posts |
My dad was especially proud of having found a 1931-S cent in circulation in the 1930's. And my grandpa, who as a county treasurer in the 1930's saw a lot of small change in the course of business, only found a few of the pre 1920's semi key Lincolns. Based on this, I think almost all of the highly collected Lincoln rarities were picked out of circulation within 5 years. There were a lot of cent collectors. I can personally remember seeing 1919-P cents and the ugly silver War Nickels in circulation in the 1960's, but never found any 1955-S cents. I did find a couple of the lower mintage late 1930's nickels (1938S and 1939S) and nearly a full set of Roosevelt dimes. SLQ's were also fairly common in the 60's but most had the dates worn off. "Two minutes ago I would have sold my chances for a tired dime." Fred Astaire
Edited by thq
06/20/2017 08:58 am
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
1695 Posts |
I think volume is the relevant here. A coin roll hunter will go through exponentially more coins that someone who only encounters coins in normal commerce. My childhood elderly neighbors were serious coin roll hunters and completed two complete Lincoln sets from circulation (probably in the 1940s or 50s), and they were especially proud of their two face-value 1909 S VDB finds.
|
|
Pillar of the Community
 United States
4591 Posts |
If you commonly see them circulated down into the G or AG grades, then they definitely circulated. And for many, many years. 1932 Washington quarters for example - few people could afford to invest 25c during the depression. They were saved after the war when times got better. Also remember: * A date might not be recognized as key until the mintage figures were posted after the end of the year. * Some did get news coverage, e.g. the removal of initials VDB in 1909 - so these are more common than you would expect from the prices * There were not a lot of serious coin collectors saving coins; maybe lots of casual 'savers' of a few oddities from pocket change * Coins circulated more in their local areas - 1909S were rare on the East Coast -----Burton 50+ year / Life / Emeritus ANA member (joined 12/1/1973) Life member: Numismatics International, CONECA Member: TNA, FtWCC, NETCC, EveryCountry (online) coin club Owned by three cats and a wife of 40+ years (joined 1983) Author: 3rd Edition of the Sample Slabs book, https://www.sampleslabs.info/ |
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
4469 Posts |
In the early 70's Morgan dollars were used in casinos for the dollar slot machines. I had a list of about 8 key dates and I looked through thousands of Morgan's and never found a key date. I would take home some the common date that looked nice. The slot machines really damaged the coins with marks and gouges. |
|
Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
When I was a kid almost any coin was just a coin. This was way, way back and as a kid coin collector, I was able to find coins like the Lincoln 09S VDB in change. Same with the 14D Lincoln. If I had the money I could have saved many so called key dated coins. A hobby shop near my house had a dish in the window full of 16D Mercury dimes for $1.50 each. Can't remember where I got the money but I bought all of them. When I was a kid even Seated dimes were in change. Sure wish I knew then what I know now. |
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
2202 Posts |
My dad was born in 1927 and collected Lincoln cents. He was able to assemble a complete set from 1909-1959 strictly from pocket change, minus the 1909-SVDB and the 1931-S.
Imagine buying a pack of gum and receiving a 1909-S or a 1914-D in change from the register. That's what happened to him.
Edited by jpsned
06/20/2017 12:26 pm
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
593 Posts |
I started collecting when I was a kid with a paper route in Iowa. A customer used to go through my change and she got me into the coin collecting back in the 50`s. I got blue Whitman books for .35 cents and started my hunt. I completed Wa quarters, Buffalos, Jeffersons most of Lincoln cents,all the Franklins and most Walkers. I had lots of silver coins and Silver Dollars that I had to sell when the silver boom of the 70`s. I can buy those back for less money now than I sold them to the melting pot. I bought my 37 3 leg buffalo from Superior coin for $25 and 31S cent for $5 area. A lot of $$ for a paperboy. Grandma gave a BU 1913 type 1 buffalo she got in 1913 and several old coins back to 1797. All Which I still have as memory. And I have the first 1959 LMC I got when they were minted in 59 Best Hobby to start with and save money also |
|
Bedrock of the Community
United States
94367 Posts |
Partly it depends on where you grew up - that is, if you lived way west you had a much better chance of finding scarce D and S mint coins. I inherited many rolls of LWC from someone who taught school in Sacramento during the 1930s and early 1040s; more than 60% were S mints, starting with a couple of well worn 1913-S examples and including many EF and AUs from the '20s and 30s, including one '31-S. Less than 10% were P mints. Now imagine the experience of someone teaching in Boston at the same time! |
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
2362 Posts |
I got interested in coins at 10 years old in the mid 1950's. My Dad would come home every day from the factory and I would search his coins. As an adult I realized that he probably made a stop after work so I could see more coins than would be expected. I could keep the cents and dimes but none of the quarters or halfs because they were a lot of money for a person earning a 1950s factory wage. I decided to keep all the cents from the 1930s and earlier and put them in coffee cans. I kept moving these coffee cans all my life but never researched them because initially I didn't have a coin book and later I didn't have the spare time. Fifty years later I was recovering from a knee replacement and had lots of time to look at all these pennies. Yup - a 1922 No D Lincoln. So, that coin was in circulation for over 30 years. It's my only slabbed coin.
Member ANA and EAC "You got to lose to know how to win". Dream On by Aerosmith |
|
Valued Member
 United States
186 Posts |
Intriguing stories. I would have loved to live in an era when we actually used coins.
|
|
Bedrock of the Community
United States
17884 Posts |
Quote:
So, that coin was in circulation for over 30 years. If happened to be in circulation thirty years after it was produced. You have no way to know if it was in circulation the whole time. If it had been in circulation the whole time it would have been pretty severely worn. The obv probably barely recognizable. |
|
CCF Advertiser
United States
1533 Posts |
If you were a kid in the early 50's before coin collecting hit the mainstream, you could have bought almost anything for almost nothing. There is rarity and then there is demand. With no demand, even extremely rare things are cheap. I look at some exonumia that are R-7 to R-8 items and they cost nothing because no one cares. I feel like US pattern coinage is like that as well. I see some R-7 patterns that trade for the same money they did 20 years ago as there are still no more than 4 people in the world that want to own one.
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
4469 Posts |
I collected in the early 50's when I was 8 years old. I could find some nice coins in circulation, but they were hard to keep as I would spend them. My dad had bought me a coin magazine with prices and a folder for my coin collection. If I found a nice coin that was valuable, there was no where to sell it.
Edited by Slider23
06/21/2017 9:29 pm
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
7840 Posts |
I don't believe that the mint informed people of the mintage made back in the day...so finding key dates from the year of mintage, or within a few years, was hit or miss. Lots of first year mintage coins are/were saved but were later put back into circulation by an unknowing individual. Most people don't care about what passes through their fingers.
|
| |
Replies: 16 / Views: 2,685 |
Posted 06/20/2017 07:37 am
