What Got You Started?

My oldest brother collected coins. My mom worked at the local credit union and I was lucky enough to count the coins every night.

How I wish I could have saved everything. At 5 years old, you just don't know!

Way back in the late 60's I worked at a drive-in movie concession stand. During the intermission I worked the cash register. So that's when I saw my first Buffalo nickel. And then some time later I saw a Morgan. I would toss the odd coins to the back of the drawer and when we counted the cash after closing I would buy the old coins.

I put the coins in jars and jewelry boxes...and forgot about them until this past year. I don't have a lot and most are very worn but I am having a lot of fun learning about them and searching all the change that comes my way.

Back in the mid 1970's, mom started me off with a Mercury dime she found and then pointed out wheaties in change and later some Mexican silver.


Thanks mom!

Way back when the Mint stopped making those large Cents in 1857 and switched to those smaller ones, I figured I should run around saving all those large ones. So that is how I started coin collecting. I never could get used to those little Pennies back then and still wish they'ld go back to the large ones.

My grandmother had her own business and one day needed to go in for something or another while she was watching my brother and I. She sat us down with two albums and a "huge" jug full of pennies-- many of them wheats. We sat there for probably hours, sorting through them. Sibling rivalry being what it is, it soon turned into a competition:

"I found the oldest one!"
"yeah well it looks like crap. Look at this one it is still shiny!"
"So what if it's still shiny it's not that old!"
"It's older than you are!"
"so what, so are you and that doesn't make you any better"
"yes it does!"
"then my penny is better because it's older than both of us"
"Maybe but it's ugly like you"

etc etc etc.

We sat there bickering the day away as only siblings can do and filling our albums. The bickering would have been there anyway regardless of what we were doing but was muted by our interest in the coins... so Grandma knew what she was doing.

Not sure what specifically we found, I still have the album though and all my finds. My brother slacked off, he might have finished his lincoln memorial album up to 80-something. Not sure if he still has his, he dropped off with coins shortly thereafter. I've been hooked ever since.

Late '60's...staying up late on Friday nights... helping sort through $50 bags of Lincolns that my father picked up from the bank on his way home from work.

Rolling 'em back up on Sunday so he could get 'em back to the bank on Monday. $50 was a lot of money then. That $50 was a combination of house-payment, and grocery-money...

Good times!

1826 George 1V shilling. That was 53 years ago. I still have it. I have built and sold two collections since then. Current collection started 25 years ago.