1841 Seated Liberty (W Name Etched On It)

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

Author	Replies: 9 / Views: 1,361
tomasal Valued Member United States 76 Posts	Posted 11/08/2017 9:55 pm I got into a little history with this one. It's a beautiful coin but with someone's name all over it. I guess that these were called Lucky Coins in the Civil War. Here's one excerpt that I read... During the American Civil War, soldiers used coins for more than just currency. Out of fear of being killed and buried as an "unknown soldier," soldiers would engrave their personal information on coins, and use them for dog tags. Coins were also used to make field repairs to clothing, in which a coin was used to replace a lost coat button. And for a romantic sendoff, a departing soldier would engrave a coin as a gift for a woman he left behind. Maybe this will be my new lucky coin. I am told that the name engraving devalues it to maybe a few hundred dollars. Nice tone though. Report this Post to the Staff

MikeF Pillar of the Community United States 3479 Posts	Posted 11/08/2017 10:27 pm What is the name inscribed? We do have a resident counterstamp expert. He goes by the user name Exoguy but from my understanding unless the name is historically significant these only hurt the coins value. TPG's label the details-graffiti. Still a cool piece of history, though. Report this Post to the Staff
Mark1959 Pillar of the Community 7234 Posts	Posted 11/08/2017 10:49 pm Too bad about the graffiti - still a great coin. Report this Post to the Staff
tomasal Valued Member United States 76 Posts	Posted 11/08/2017 11:17 pm TJ Whaley is the name as I see it. Seemed to be a common name back then but not so much now (English name). I am not sure if that's historically significant or not. Doubt it Report this Post to the Staff
tomasal Valued Member United States 76 Posts	Posted 11/08/2017 11:51 pm Btw, thanks for the responses guys. I get the impression that this one was intended as a dog tag. He went out of his way to make sure the letters were written in different places. Edited by tomasal 11/08/2017 11:53 pm Report this Post to the Staff
bandsdean Pillar of the Community United States 2125 Posts	Posted 11/09/2017 2:48 pm 1841-O Looks to be AU-58 details. Nice looking coin. Excellent strike and remaining luster. Retail, a $600.00 coin without the graffiti. Cool coin! Report this Post to the Staff
Coinfrog Bedrock of the Community United States 94367 Posts	Posted 11/09/2017 3:03 pm Very interesting! to the CCF! Report this Post to the Staff
chesterb Pillar of the Community United States 1261 Posts	Posted 11/09/2017 6:10 pm This is a very nice coin but sometimes grafitti is just grafitti as I think is the case here. I'd be surprised if a half dollar was used as a Civil War dog tag, especially an 1841 that survived in this condition. Typically you would also see state and regimen inscribed on a coin used as a dog tag but exoguy could probably confirm. It's fun, though, to imagine where coins have been and who had them. TJ Whaley adds to the mystery. A half dollar was a lot of money and it's probably someone who wanted to protect/tag what was his. Edited by chesterb 11/09/2017 6:12 pm Report this Post to the Staff
tomasal Valued Member United States 76 Posts	Posted 11/11/2017 08:03 am Chester if it was just graffiti then we'd probably have a very worn coin as there would have been no value in keeping it preserved. Remember that it's an 1841 (20+ years before Civil War) and fairly uncirculated, so it must have been a coin that maybe a father had in his collection and gave to his son as a lucky coin going off to war (pure speculation). This guy went to a lot of trouble to make sure the writing was recognized on this coin that was a decent amount of money at the time. More importantly, it doesn't appear to have been circulated, so he must have come back alive and set the coin aside as a family heirloom and sign of good luck. My father bought this coin back in the early 70's and I am guessing from some type of an estate sale. For me, this coin has a real positive energy. I'd love to keep it as a lucky coin but I'd have to put it something to protect it before I carry it around. I would really like to connect the name somehow but Whaley was a very common name back then. Initially, the graffiti was a disappointment to me. However, considering the history of the Civil War and how soldiers used coins back then, I consider it an added value just for me personally. I can't prove that it is a dogtag etc. However, all the signs point to it be associated with something special ... just have that feeling. Anyway, thanks again for all the feedback from everyone. Edited by tomasal 11/11/2017 08:38 am Report this Post to the Staff
IndianGoldEagle Bedrock of the Community United States 36744 Posts	Posted 11/19/2017 09:29 am AU-55 details, graffiti. Report this Post to the Staff
	Replies: 9 / Views: 1,361

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

All Forums Category: US Coins and Currency Forums Forum: US Classic and Colonial Coin Grading

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

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!

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 0.31 seconds to rattle this change.