TYBEE BEACHCOMBER | NOV 2017 19
As a child, I grew up doing manly things. My friends and I were like a tribe
straight out of Lord of the Flies. We hunted. We fished. We trapped anything
that moved. We rode motorcycles, wrenched and cursed. We camped out in
the woods, chewed Copenhagen (for a summer, what was I thinking?), built
forts, camp fires and perfected figure 4 traps.
Time off the homestead was spent with friends chasing girls, playing
sports, and in general, living a life in pursuit of manliness. At age 15, I was
fully qualified to have written a couple of GQ articles on the Art of Being
a Man, complete with sharing exploits of sneaking beer and raiding an
occasional pot field when the opportunity presented it (don’t worry Mom – I
never inhaled).
But now at a slightly older age (dad hood), I don’t need all that manly
crap. In fact, as I’ve mellowed, I’ve picked up a few sensitive hobbies. Finger
picking guitar. Watching the Hallmark channel with my daughter (damn
dusty rooms). And of course, the ultimate nerd sport: Coin Collecting.
How times change.
Don’t get me wrong. I think I’ve always had the coin collecting virus. When
I was a kid, my stepdad had a coffee can full of silver dollars. I remember
looking at them and thinking they looked cool, and were probably worth
millions of dollars. But now, I’m a bit older, have some grey hair, and a
different appreciation for things. So dear reader, continue on, but be warned:
this may turn you into a nerdy coin collector.
Here are J. Beebs Top Three Reasons to Collect Coins:
1. It’s a relatively cheap hobby to start. Coin collectors come in all flavors.
I’m what they call a coin book collector, that is, I’m looking to get a single
coin, from every mint, for every year (BTW, I’m currently looking for an 1916
Mercury Dime, just fyi).
You can start your own coin collection with the coins in your pocket.
Quarters are a lot of fun, because since 1999, all the quarters have a different
state logo or national park on the back. So you can make it your personal
goal to collect one for each state/park.
While you are looking at the coins in your pocket, you should be on the
lookout for any silver coins that are dated 1964 or earlier. Except Nickels …
ignore nickels for a minute. But silver dimes, quarters, half dollars and dollars
made before 1964 are made of silver. And silver is a commodity, which is
currently traded at around $17 an ounce. So a 1964 quarter is probably
worth about $3. So don’t throw out your old stuff! Do some research!
2. You actually might make money. You probably won’t. But you might. And
guys, if you are going to start spending $25 for a single old dollar, you’ll need
a story to tell your girls/wives. And this is the story: “Honey, I might actually
make money! It’s an investment.”
Now if your wife is like mine, she won’t believe the “it’s an investment”
story, because I’ve used it a little too often. Every classic car I ever owned
“was an investment,” and she went along with that. Every classic rifle “was
an investment,” and she goes along with that most of the time. But she drew
the line when I told her I needed a 100 year old bottle of Scotch. That wasn’t
an investment she said, that was whiskey, and we had plenty of Jack and
Jameson and I needed to shut up. So boys, read the tea leaves here before
you leap … but technically …. coins really are an investment. A 1909 S VDB
penny, which was worth exactly one penny in 1909 is worth at least one
thousand dollars today, and if it’s in mint condition, it can be worth over 10
thousand dollars. If you are going to pull the investment card, you’ll need to
buy the Red Book, which will: 1) give you a source to justify your investment
to the corporate board, i.e., the wife, and 2) let you know what the retail
prices of all US coins are. So yeah, it’s an investment.
3. Every coin has a story. There’s a lot of history in coin collecting.
I like US Coins because of the history. I mentioned nickels earlier, saying
they are worth … well a nickel. But there’s an exception. A Nickel made
between 1942 and 1945 has silver in it. So those nickels, which have a giant
mintmark on the back, are worth a bit more than a nickel. The 1942-45
Nickels, also called War Nickels, were made of silver because during WWII,
nickel was a critical war material. The war actually changed our money. Ditto
for the 1943 Steel Penny. The penny, which looks identical to other pennies
in the 40’s, will stick out immediately because it’s not made of copper. It’s
made of steel, as copper was a critical war material. And it will also stick
to a magnet, because it’s steel. And of course, its steel looking, not copper.
There’s a ton of history in our coins. The Carson City mint in Nevada, now
closed, has a huge story and following behind it, and some of our rarer coins/
dollars come from this mint. So if you have an old Morgan dollar with a CC
mintmark, you might want to do some research. And if you happen to have
some weird stuff in the attic like a two cent penny, a colonial issue coin, or
some foreign coins … do your research. You might have a little something.
And even if you don’t… consider that any coin you have probably does
have a story. That 1865 penny might have bought a cowboy a meal, a shot
of whiskey and a bath. It’s probably a good thing coins can’t talk, but I have
to imagine the stories would be fascinating!
If you have some interest in this area, or have unanswered coin
questions, send your Coin Questions and stories to The Coin Nerd at info@
TybeeBeachcomber.com. If we like your questions/story we just might print
it! Happy Collecting!
Today’s Confession:
I’m a Nerdy Coin
Collector!
By J. Beebs
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