|
This page may contain links that result in small commissions to keep this free site up and running.
Welcome Guest! Registering and/or logging in will remove the anchor (bottom) ads. It's Free!
To participate in the forum you must log in or register. | Author |
 Replies: 9 / Views: 876 |
|
|
CCF Master Historian of USA Commemoratives
 United States
12250 Posts |
To kick off this new series that I'm calling "What If? Phantoms," I highlight a potential coin intended to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the incorporation of Stoughton, Massachusetts. Stoughton is a small town in eastern Massachusetts (2020 population: ~30,000); it is located west of Boston and Cape Cod in Norfolk County. The town was named in honor of William Stoughton (born 1631), the first Chief Justice of Colonial Courts (1686) in the Massachusetts Bay Colony; his appointment helped establish/organize the Courts. A few years later, in 1692, Stoughton was appointed as the Colony's Chief Justice of the Superior Courts. William Stoughton died in July 1701. The area that would become Stoughton continued to grow in the early 1700s, with new European settlers arriving and community structures, such as a church, being built. Initially, the area was formally recognized as the South Precinct of Dorchester. In December 1726, a group of prominent area representatives petitioned for a new township. The petition was granted the same month, and Stoughton was born! Referenced during a January 1925 Hearing for the 1925 Battle of Bennington / Independence of Vermont Sesquicentennial Half Dollar. Mary M. O'Reilly, Assistant Director of the US Mint, mentioned it during her testimony objecting to the Bennington / Vermont coin. She referred to it as one of six pending bills, but this was a misstatement on her part as no Stoughton, MA bill had been introduced (at least not one I've ever located - on my own or with a Government Records librarian's assistance!). It appears the Treasury Department and/or the Mint had been consulted with by the sponsor of the potential Stoughton coin and such discussions may have caused the potential bill to be on the Assistant Director's mind as a possible new coin as she spoke. In any case, it appears that the coin's sponsor was dissuaded from pursuing the coin. For other of my posts about commemorative coins and medals, including more What If? and What If? Phantom stories, see: Commems Collection. Collecting history one coin or medal at a time! (c) commems. All rights reserved.
Edited by commems
04/24/2023 07:31 am
|
|
|
|
Valued Member
Canada
333 Posts |
Really cool history! Thanks Commems!
|
|
Bedrock of the Community
United States
94367 Posts |
If you've not heard of Stoughton, it's right near the Moose Hill Wildlife Sanctuary.
|
|
Moderator
United States
34393 Posts |
@commems, I really like that you are doing this. Your threads add a richness to CCF and help me learn something every time I read one. I have one small suggestion for you to ponder. While of course there is no way to know what this commemorative coin would have looked like, it might be nice, when feasible, to include an image representative of the specific location to these threads. For example, in the case of Stoughton, including the town seal might provide additional color on the origins of Stoughton and the characteristics considered most important by the founding fathers: Quote:
Edwin Arthur Jones is the designer of the Stoughton Town Seal which was adopted in 1892. The following remarks were published in The Stoughton Sentinel after the adoption of the seal in 1892.
"The design in intended to represent after the manner of heraldry, the most notable facts in the history of Stoughton. The first of these is the fact that the territory now called Stoughton was once Dorchester. This is represented of the shield in the lower right hand side of the circle, which shield is taken bodily from the shield of Dorchester, and which symbolizes the important facts in the history of Dorchester at the time it included what is now Stoughton. The building in left foreground represents the first church of Dorchester, the society of which was organized in England in March 1630 and arrived here in June of the same year. The building in the rear of the church calls to mind the first free school, established in 1639. This was undoubtedly was the first free Public School in history. The building in the background, on the Neponset River, represents the first Grist Mill, built in 1633 by Captain Israel Stoughton, the father of William Stoughton, for whom the town was named.
The smaller shield on the left overlapping the Dorchester shield, calls to mind the fact that the portion of Dorchester set apart for the town received its name from Lieutenant Governor William Stoughton. This is indicated by the presence on the shield of the Stoughton arms. copied from the seal impressed on that gentleman's last will and testament.
The harp which rests above the shield, represents, after the manner of heraldry, that in addition to sharing with Dorchester the distinction of possessing the first mill, church and free school, we also claim in our own special right the origin of the first musical society in the country, a fact which is now everywhere admitted.
It will be seen that the Town Seal is peculiarly significant and characteristic. It tells its own story briefly and completely and since its adoption has been heartily endorsed by every resident of this historical town." https://stoughtonhistory.com/tseal.htm"If you climb a good tree, you get a push."
-----Ghanaian proverb
"The danger we all now face is distinguishing between what is authentic and what is performed."
-----King Adz
|
|
Moderator
United States
15381 Posts |
A thoroughly enjoyable read - thanks @commems. Quote:
If you've not heard of Stoughton, it's right near the Moose Hill Wildlife Sanctuary. Well, that puts the location in proper context.  Take a look at my other hobby ... http://www.jk-dk.art |
|
CCF Master Historian of USA Commemoratives
 United States
12250 Posts |
@Spence: A good thought. I always like visuals!
I actually considered including a Stoughton, MA Seal, but the images of it that I located appeared to have potential copyright concerns and I didn't want to cause any issues. So...
I'm happy to go back and have another look.
Collecting history one coin or medal at a time! (c) commems. All rights reserved.
Edited by commems
04/24/2023 10:18 am
|
|
Moderator
United States
34393 Posts |
Ah yes great point @commems and one that I didn't consider. As usual, you are leaps and bounds ahead of me!  "If you climb a good tree, you get a push."
-----Ghanaian proverb
"The danger we all now face is distinguishing between what is authentic and what is performed."
-----King Adz
|
|
CCF Master Historian of USA Commemoratives
United States
12250 Posts |
Here we go! A Stoughton, MA Seal image that is out of copyright! Seal of Stoughton, MA - Circa 1910 (Image credit: Annual Report of the Town Officers and Committees of the Town of Stoughton. 1910. Public Domain.)Collecting history one coin or medal at a time! (c) commems. All rights reserved.
|
|
Moderator
United States
187446 Posts |
Very interesting!  |
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
3634 Posts |
Thanks, commems, and I look forward to further chapters of this new series!
|
| |
Replies: 9 / Views: 876 |
|
To participate in the forum you must log in or register.
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 |
© 2005 - 2026 Coin Community Forums |
| It took 0.33 seconds to rattle this change. |
 |
|
| |
| |
Posted 04/24/2023 09:16 am
