Why Did Baby Boomers Collect Coins Compared To Later Generations?

Boomer here!

My Mom got into coin collecting when she was in her '20's and passed her interest and coins on to me. I've added tremendously to her collection. Numismatics has been my passion for years! I started my own collection when I was 11. I'm a long time ANA Member and enjoy being a part of that organization too.

Yes, my Mother was incredibly frugal and thrifty. Most of her coins were circulated. My Mom and Dad were in the restaurant business for many years and she would pull Wheatie's and all silver coins, including Morgans and Peace dollars, right out of the cash drawer. I guess that could be equated to searching coin rolls now.

Mom enjoyed her "hobby" so much and was very protective of it, and rightfully so! She was young during the Depression and I know that it had quite an impact on her and my Dad! They very rarely bought anything on credit! Everything was in cash as much as possible. I don't think they ever had a credit card. Mom and Dad lived well because of their businesses. I was so fortunate!

Both of my parents are gone now but, I'm keeping her knowledge and collections alive!

Thank you so much for starting this thread! I'm thoroughly enjoying the stories from all sorts of folks!

I really enjoyed reading that. Thank you dsking.

I'm sure the advent of video games in the early 80's had nothing to do with the lack of interest in collecting.
Not pinball machines or arcade games but video games at home.

I would imagine that one reason that coin collecting is probably not as popular for younger generations as their older counterparts at the same age is the prevalence of debit cards. I was born in 1985, so I'm considered an older millennial. There's a huge difference in the life experiences for those of us millennials who grew up before the internet, cell phones, and other modern technology and those who have only known such their whole lives. I used to pick out interesting coins from my lunch money in grade school. Nobody prompted me to do that, I just thought it was interesting when I would come across something that I rarely saw, so I set it aside as something special. Bicentennial quarters, Indian cents, steelies, Buffalo nickels, etc. Franklin halves were still very much in circulation as were half dollars in general. My younger siblings born in the mid 90s went through school with reloadable lunch cards. I would imagine that most younger people born after the mid-90s have probably very little experience actually handling change. Everyone uses debit cards. I would venture that the average younger milennials and zoomers have probably never seen a half dollar or $2 bill. My wife was born in 1992, and initially she really didn't understand the fascination I had with the hobby. Still, even now I like setting aside clad Ikes, $2 bills, and 10% Mexican pesos to include with tips at restaurants. I figure it's something interesting that the servers likely haven't seen or at least not often. Hopefully it's a nice change of pace for them! And before anyone asks, no I do not leave $10 tips entirely in Ikes and/or pesos!

Spreading Ike Love!

What was available to the boomers in the mid 40's to mids 60's in circulation? Indian Head cents possibly back to the 1880's, all the Lincolns, nickels back to the 1880's, if you could afford to collect dimes quarters or halves back to the 1890's, Silver dollars could be had back to the 1870's. nd it was possible some time to even find semi-keys or eve key dates/mints in circulation.

What was available to Generation X and later in circulation? Lincoln Memorial cents, maybe some late 40's and 50's wheat cents. Jefferson nickels back tot eh late 30's, dimes and quarters back to 1965. In half dollars you might get lucky and get som 40% silver pieces but pretty much very little before 1971 and almost certainly nothing before 1965. No silver dollars, but you might be able to get some Ike dollars once they came out. As far as key's or semi-keys, you might find some S mint cents from the early 50's and 1968 to 74,. Some silver War Nickels, the 1938 and 39 D and S nickels. If you were very lucky a 1950 D nickel. For dimes and up you might occasionally find a pre 1964 silver dime or quarter. As you get into the later generations even less is available in circulation until the W mint quarters came out, and most of those got pulled before they ever had a chance to get into circulation.

I got all my Ikes from change in the early-mid 70s. Half dollars @Condor101? Are you talking about asking a bank for them? I haven't seen a half in regular change for probably 40 years.

I've been at it for 50 years and in the early years you would every now and then get a half dollar in actual change. But you did usually have to get them at the bank. But they were more available at the bank back then. They did usually tend to keep at least some on hand. Today they don't normally stock them and you have to order them.