Family member gets 1803 dollar working as a bank teller

[HCumberdale]

While visiting with my inlaws this weekend, my wife's aunt who was visiting told us she had taken in some old coins when working as a teller about a year ago. She was unaware I am a collector as I tend to keep this activity fairly private in fear of robbery. Her story is that a man came into the bank where she was working and said he found some coins in his late grandmother's attic and was hoping they could still be redeemed. My wife's aunt had no previous knowledge of rare coins but had the foresight to buy them from her till. She said there was about 35 dollars total of various old coins, and she felt they were all silver. She mentioned only 1 in particular an 1803 dollar.

 

Needless to say I was quite excited by her story and made sure to give her a quick rundown of what not to do with the coins, and also to move them from "somewhere in her living room" to her safety deposit box. Thankfully she has not cleaned them, and has had them stored in a ziploc bag. She is not motivated to sell unless there is upwards of 25k value, which I told her is possible, but unlikely. Truthfully, I am thinking 25k is reasonably possible if there is substantial bust coinage, but I'd rather her be pleasantly surprised than dissapointed later.

 

She lives in New England and we'll be visiting for a wedding late summer of this year. She has promised me a chance to look over them and give her a rough idea of what they are worth then. I'm having a hard time not thinking about what she might have and 4-5 months seems like a long time to wait!!

 

I'll be sure to update this thread when I find out more, but I just had to share the story. If any of you have any advice for me to give her in the meantime I will be appreciative. I thought about sending her home with a bunch of 2x2's to at least secure the coins from additional wear, but then thought better of it. Fingers, staples, dropping coins...it scares me a bit having her do it without any experience and she is in her 70's.

[AnkurJ]

Id tell her simply to leave them in the ziplock bag and dont touch them!

[MarkFeld]

What makes you think the coins are worth $25,000? Is that based on something other than the knowledge that there is one Bust coin and 35 coins in total?

[mumu]

Well im sure you already know but to non collectors, 100 years can sound just as old as 200 years. I had someone swear to me they had a dollar from 1799 and it was from 1899 and they just thought "well its still old". I think on the ATS forums there was a new member who came on and claimed to have an 1807 cent or something and it turned out to be an 1907 or something along those lines.

[HCumberdale]

What makes you think the coins are worth $25,000? Is that based on something other than the knowledge that there is one Bust coin and 35 coins in total?

 

Well I admit it is hopeful thinking. The dollar and/or all the coins could be fake or badly worn/damaged...who knows. She threw out the number 25k and I told her it was possible but very unlikely. I think it is more possible than the impression I gave her solely based on the fact that there is at least the one dollar in apparently decent enough condition to identify. I asked if the portrait on the dollar was present on the other coins and she said was pretty sure it was. She told me there was about 35 dollars in face value, in various denominations, all silver. So if there are bust quarters in decent condition, maybe some nice halves...you know...my mind is wandering and I think that a possibility is there for something nice. Odds are that these coins are not going to be in nice condition, common dates, possiby cleaned/damaged, etc. and far from 25k in value. I just think that the possibility of meeting her cutoff necessary to sell is more reasonable than I let on to her and I remain hopeful.

[JIM F.]

From time to time there are posts on this board about a non-collector elderly family member having some rare coins they came across. There never are any pictures posted. Usually the same theme repeats itself, the family member lives a long distance away. I don't recall an OP ever following up and coming up with anything rare or spectacular. Not that you won't, and it would be great if you did, but I haven't seen it happen yet. A non-collector I know told me he has a few rolls of "rare" pennies given to him from his grandfather. The way he described them led me to think they were flying eagle cents in UNC condition (obviously I was skeptical). Ultimately they turned out to be a bunch of circulated common wheaties.

 

Again, it would be great if you stumbled on something of value.

 

Best of luck.

 

[Conder101]

Chances are also QUITE good that what she took in was one of the Chinese counterfeits.

[Raisethis2]

Send her one of those cheap camera's and a return envelope already stamped. Get a better feel for the facts in the case without the waiting.

[truthteller]

coins when working as a teller about a year ago.

 

 

For the last 6 years, my local bank tellers want me to see all the "really old" silver dollars that they put aside from the till. The vast percentage are chinese fakes, ranging from morgan dollar lookalikes to modern fantasy coins, not to mention a few goofy trade and bust dollars. Once in a long while, there are real morgan dollars that are brought in. I recommended to all the tellers to keep a small magnet at the window to weed out the obvious fakes.

 

 

TRUTH

[e1cnr]

If you don't expect much, you won't be disappointed

[mkman123]

pls update us!

[HCumberdale]

Send her one of those cheap camera's and a return envelope already stamped. Get a better feel for the facts in the case without the waiting.

 

I like this idea. I'm going to see what I can do about that and I'll be sure to keep everyone here updated on what comes of it.

[messydesk]

In order of most likely to least likely:

 

- Her 70+-year-old eyes read 1903 as 1803.

- She has a fake 1803 dollar

- 12 other things

- She has a real 1803 dollar

[JIM F.]

We are all cynics. Maybe its a Pillar Dollar. That would be a modest reward.

 

[Elbesaar]

 

Ok... Its been 11 months - and what ever happened to the 1803 Silver Dollar ?

 

Or... was it an 1903 ?

 

 

Inquiring minds want to know !

 

 

[coinman_23885]

In order of most likely to least likely:

 

- Her 70+-year-old eyes read 1903 as 1803.

- She has a fake 1803 dollar

- 12 other things

- She has a real 1803 dollar

 

This.

[HCumberdale]

I do have an update on this, but nothing at all satisfying.

 

When I went to the first event of the wedding, she had "forgotten" to bring the coins. This despite the fact that I called her the day before, and she said she had them in her purse. So we arranged for her to bring them to the next event (this being an Indian wedding, there were multiple ceremonies over several days). At the following event, she decided to leave them at home due to security concerns given she would be driving to multiple places that day. So we arranged to meet at her town home a couple days after. That later got canceled because the events of the day went long and she was tired.

 

She offered to mail them to me (registered mail) which I told her I would pay for. This never happened and I've heard every excuse. I finally gave up talking about it, given there always seems to be some resistance to the subject now.

 

My best guess us that one of the following is true:

 

1) She made the original story up

2) She did get some silver dollars and such from a bank customer which were not nearly as old as she stated

3) She already sold her findings to someone

4) She doesn't trust me, and is keeping her treasures "safe"

 

Regardless, I only ended up frustrated after the whole ordeal. Next time I'll be much more cautious when one of these stories comes along. Usually I'm the most skeptical guy in the room, but I think I let my guard down due to the fact that it was a family member with the tale this time. Oh well. Live and learn

 

[mumu]

These stories end like this 100% of the time. That is not meant to bash you, it just seems we all end up with a family member or friend putting us thru this kind of thing at one time or another.

[Elbesaar]

 

Very disappointed in your Aunt.

[bochiman]

Sorry o hear about the run around

 

Sucks when you have the best of intentions and that happens. Been there, done that. Now, I try not to get any hopes up of seeing cool things, no matter what they say they have.

[spy88]

My Grandfather lived in Denver after discharging from WW1 til his demise in '94. All the time he was buying from the Denver mint adding to his random collection. I only got to see it once when I visited as a 20 yr old on leave from the Army in 1970. It was to be my inheritance as the only male in the blood line.

 

My Grandparents had adopted a second female child...she had two sons. During the '80's, they were visiting from their home in Washington State. The sons were both under 17.

 

The older one found the 'collection' and decided he was entitled to take it and spend it as he saw fit...so he did.

 

Now, I have no way of knowing with any accuracy the value of the collection above face, but the unmitigated gall of this i*i*t went without penalty (to my knowledge).

I was never able to have a face-to-face with him (and he is lucky for that!) but I still fume with the thought more towards him then the loss to me.