Help With Information On Counterstamp 1882-H Canadian Cent

Very interesting!

Maybe T Buffey was from the USA.

In the UK in the mid 19th century advertising stamped on coins became quite a problem, so various Acts of Parliament were passed banning it. These Acts only covered current coins of the realm. The result was that advertisers imported foreign bronze coins, stamped them and circulated them. These coins were largely French 10 centime coins from the time of Napoleon III, because these coins were about the size of the British penny. The key point is that the drive to stamp the French coins didn't originate in France.

Was this Canadian coin found in the US? Were there similar US laws which would make an American advertiser stamp a Canadian coin?

If this stamped coin was circulated in the US, what US coin would it have replaced? Would it have been economically viable? The French 10c coins were imported into Britain at 252 to the pound. Circulating them as pennies would have made a profit of 1 shilling in the pound as well as doing the advertising.


By the way, re the comment from dar76124, what is "Brunk"?

I found a reference on the net that shows from 1879 when the US returned to the gold standard, until 1914, the CAD and USD circulated at par. So circulating a marked Canadian coin in the US was viable.

I found a copy of Brunk on Abe books, but at nearly £400 including shipping, that is not economically viable ( for me ). Looked very interesting.

I found details of a Canadian book which may help you. Apparently only 150 copies were produced so cost might be prohibitive.

Marked Impressions: A Catalogue of the Joseph Foster collection of 19th century Canadian countermarked coins
Warren Baker
Montreal 2006

2 volumes, text and plates

Anyone on this forum have a copy?

I am waiting for a book on British countermarked coins to arrive in the post. When it does, if it has anything relevant I will let you know.

I found a copy of "Marked Impressions" at a somewhat reasonable price (I seem to be collecting numismatic books now) and there is no Buffey in there either. We may never know the origin.

Thanks dar76124 and Anaximander for checking those resources!

As you said, we may never know who this T. Buffey is.

I'm late to the party on this posting. I've not before seen this T. BUFFEY counterstamp. There were many c/s's issued in that province. That said, many New Englanders, typically residing in border states, stamped Canadian coins.

The Ontario carpenter who died in 1887 is a distinct possibility, but there are others. Presently, this piece looks like a maverick to me, yet to be positively attributed.

A great many of the 19th century men whose name appears as a c/s were metalsmiths and/or masons. If they didn't create a stamp themselves, a fellow mason would do it for them. The stamp could then be utilized for a commercial purpose or simply personal use, such as marking their tools or other property.

Many a mason carried a pocket piece, being a stamped or engraved coin to be shown to others; this, as a conversation starter, a form of brotherly introduction. Eventually, die struck, official-looking Chapter Pennies, often personalized with a member's name, were utilized.Thus, a carpenter, bricklayer or other simple laborer might possess a masonic penny ID, a badge of sorts.

A good way to research pieces like this is to do a google search for "T. BUFFEY" .... "THOMAS BUFFEY" .... "TIMOTHY BUFFEY" in 19th century books; and, in this case narrowing the time from say 1870 to 1910 or so. Then, try attaching words to each name, like "PATENT" .... "MASON" .... "MASONIC" .... This method boils down to trial and error. Another approach would be "BUFFEY, THOMAS" or "BUFFEY, T" .... attaching the word "DIRECTORY" or "GAZETTEER"- This method has often helped me derive a first name from a simple initial. That said, some solutions have taken me a decade or more to solve!

Good luck, Randy! I'm rootin' for ya!