Silver Roosevelt Dimes with Pedigrees

[Mr. Smith Guesser]

There's no doubt that an important pedigree can increase the value of a coin. Coins with names attached like Eliasberg, Norweb, and Garrett usually command a high premium in the marketplace. While others, like The Omaha Bank Hoard, are so common, they will summon little to no premium at all.

 

In this journal, I will make no argument for or against the importance of a coin's pedigree. Rather, I'd simply like to compile and share some of the specific things that I've learned about silver Roosevelt dimes with notable names and pedigrees attached.

 

Please note that I will only be referring to names and pedigrees that are noted on NGC and PCGS slabs. In other words, if the name isn't printed on the slab, I didn't include it. And again, this list is limited to 1946 to '64 silver Roosevelts.

 

--------Benson--------

 

Silver Roosevelt dimes with the Benson name attached are certified by PCGS. There is not a lot of information to be found online about the Benson name. And, in addition to the limited information, there is more than one "Benson" in numismatics, which makes things a bit confusing.

 

A New York Times article, published January 31, 1909, describes an upcoming Sotheby's auction for ancient Greek coins, which belonged to a late Mr. Frank Sherman Benson¹. (The poetry guy from my last journal.)

 

This Mr. Benson was an active member of the American Numismatic Society (not to be confused with the American Numismatic Association) who frequently gave talks and wrote for the American Journal of Numismatics. But this is not the Benson to whom I am referring.

 

The New York Times article talks about coins owned by "the late Frank S. Benson". And that was 1909, so there's no way Frank S. Benson could have ever owned any Roosevelt dimes. At that time, FDR was only 27, working as a lawyer, and wouldn't become a New York Senator until two years later.

 

After a bit of interest research, I learned that a large collection of 20th U.S. coins with the name "Benson" attached was auctioned off by Goldberg Coins and Collectibles between 2001 and 2003. The coins in this auction were noted for their fine toning.

 

I wrote to Ira Goldberg of Goldberg Coins & Collectibles to inquire about the Benson name. Mr Goldberg tells me, "Yes, the Benson collection was a very important collection for us to handle at auction. The term 'Benson toning' has become synonymous with beautiful natural toning."

 

I thought that the Roosevelt dimes may have been assembled by a later relative of Frank S. Benson. But Mr. Goldberg tells me that these Benson coins have nothing to do with Frank S. Benson at all. The Roosevelts with the Benson name were previously owned by a living collector, who wishes to remain anonymous.

 

So after all that, I still don't have any information about the original owner of these Benson dimes. And after I learned that he wants to remain anonymous, I abandoned any further research into him.

 

Nevertheless, in my experience, Roosevelt dimes with the Benson name attached are much nicer than those attached to other pedigrees. However, most of the Roosevelt dimes that I have handled lacked the "Benson toning" that was associated with the original collection. Still, the Roosevelts that I've owned with no toning are beautiful, bright white coins with excellent luster.

 

But perhaps the most interesting thing that I've found on Benson Roosevelts are undesignated RPMs; specifically on 1947 S dimes.

 

I have owned a total of six 1947 S Roosevelts with the Benson pedigree. Of these, I found two S/S RPMs, both listed in the CherryPickers' guide under FS-503 #2. But, again, neither was designated on the slab. This suggests to me that there could be more out there with the same RPM waiting to be discovered. I'm always on the lookout for more.

 

Despite being quite nice coins, Benson dimes command little to no premium. However, Roosevelts with the Benson pedigree are only somewhat available. In the past three months, there have been less than 10 sold on eBay.

 

But if you ever come across one, and are interested in Roosevelt dimes, Benson is one of the names that you really might want to check out. They're really nice coins and you have a decent chance of finding an RPM.

 

1947 S Benson Roosevelt w/ undesignated RPM, MS 66: http://outside-affiliatelinksnotallowed.com/l6wlv5x

 

--------The Omaha Bank Hoard--------

 

The Omaha Bank Hoard pedigree is perhaps the most common pedigree found on Roosevelt dimes. There are currently around 35 Roosevelts with the Omaha Bank Hoard pedigree currently for sale on eBay, with another 35 to 40 sold within the past three months.

 

There are so many Roosevelts attached to this pedigree, in fact, that it is possible (and has been done) to assemble an entire 48-coin '46 -- '64 Roosevelt set with the Omaha Bank Hoard stamp.

 

Due to the high availability of OBH Roosevelts, they also command little to no premium. I have personally owned at least two dozen silver Roosevelt's with the OBH pedigree. And overall, I have found these dimes to average to below average in quality, with most OBH Roosevelts graded MS 65 to MS 66. I have found no OBH Roosevelt with any color to speak of and luster is, in general, also just average to below average. I do not pay a premium for this name at all.

 

--------The Teich Family Collection--------

 

The Teich Family Collection is a more recent pedigree to come to the market. The collection was put together a Dr. Samuel Teich and his family in the 1950s and 60s. The Teich Family Collection was first brought to the market in 2011 by Stacks-Bowers here in Baltimore.

 

The collection included some Roosevelt dimes, but no where near as many as the OBH. Roosevelts with the Teich Family pedigree are about as available as those that carry the Benson name, with under 10 being sold on eBay in the past three months.

 

I have personally only owned a handful of Roosevelts with the Teich pedigree. But from my experience, these dimes are some of the ugliest you'll find anywhere.

 

Every Roosevelt that I've seen with the Teich pedigree has been gray with little to no luster. There has been a little color on some of the Teich Roosevelts that I have owned, however nowhere near enough to make up for the lack of luster.

 

The few Teich Family Roosevelts that I've watched sell commanded little to no premium. And I'd say for good reason. I have not been a fan of the Teich dimes that I've handled.

 

1957 D Teich Roosevelt, MS 66: http://outside-affiliatelinksnotallowed.com/lljwlyy

1958 D Teich Roosevelt, MS 65 FB: http://outside-affiliatelinksnotallowed.com/ld28ogx

 

--------The Binion Collection--------

 

The Binion Collection is perhaps the most well-known of the pedigrees. And we all know the story by now so I won't reiterate it.

 

But in addition to the 100,000 silver dollars, there were a few thousand Roosevelt dimes in Binion's vault. NGC put together 2,500 silver type sets that included a peace dollar, Kennedy dollar, Washington quarter, and Roosevelt dime. Some of these sets have been broken up and the coins sold individually. But despite at least 2,500 in the market, finding a Roosevelt dime from the Binion hoard by itself on eBay is fairly uncommon, believe it or not.

 

Also, Binion Roosevelts perhaps command the highest premium of all the silver Roosevelts with a pedigree. Although you can pick one up for $20 to $25, all of the Roosevelts with the Binion name are only certified uncirculated (as far as I know). Moreover, many Binion Roosevelts that I have come across are quite damaged. So this is one that the market is really paying for the Binion name.

 

Another thing that I've noticed about Binion Roosevelts is a very common error on the NGC slabs. I have come across at least five Binion Roosevelts that are slabbed as 1963 P Roosevelts. But they were actually 1963 Denver-minted coins. The same has been true with Washington quarters with the Binion pedigree; there are many 1963 D coins in a 1963 P slab.

 

1963 D Binion Roosevelt in 1963 P slab: http://outside-affiliatelinksnotallowed.com/mpvebwd

 

--------Other Important and Notable Roosevelt Pedigrees and Attached Names--------

 

Arthur L. Gowman Collection -- The Art Gowman Collection has been called the finest silver Roosevelt dime collection in the world. Although there are a handful dimes with this pedigree that I have seen in other sets, I have yet to see one for sale on any auction website. I believe the best way (and maybe the only way) to acquire a Roosevelt dime with this pedigree is through the Gowman Collection's agent, Mr. Nick Cascio.

 

Nick Cascio -- Mr. Cascio (as I understand) is the buying agent for the Arthur L. Gowman Collection. However, Mr. Cascio also has his name on a few silver Roosevelts in the market. I have only had the chance to own one Roosevelt dime with Mr. Cascio's name attached; a 1950 D PCGS-certified MS 67 FB. It is a very nice dime. And while I have only gotten the chance to examine this one up close, my guess is that all the Roosevelts with the Cascio name attached are also very nice. These seem to only very rarely come to the public market. In the past 12 months, I have only seen one Cascio Roosevelt on eBay, and I was the buyer. However, as mentioned above, I'm sure you could contact Mr. Cascio directly if you wanted to make an offer for one of his coins.

 

The Richmond Collection -- NGC calls the Richmond Collection "one of the greatest US coin collections ever assembled. With over 3,600 coins, the collection comprises a near-complete set of US coins from 1839 to 1955." Again, I have only had the chance to own one Roosevelt dime with the Richmond pedigree as they are not very common. This dime, a 1959 D NGC-certified MS 67 FT, is bright white, finely struck, with great luster. It is one of my favorite coins in my entire collection.

 

1959 D Richmond Collection, MS 67 FT: http://outside-affiliatelinksnotallowed.com/kplvzje

 

Kiraly Collection -- Paul Kiraly is a private collector whose Destroying the Silver Roosevelt Dimes 1946-1964 Competition set is currently ranked second in the NGC registry under the Roosevelt Dimes 1946-1964, Circulation Issue category. His set held the #1 ranking for quite a while. But has recently been back and forth between the #1 and #2 ranking.

 

Nevertheless, Mr. Kiraly has a very impressive collection and has attached his name to a few Roosevelts that are now out in the market. However, I have never owned any Roosevelt dimes with the Kiraly name. So I can't speak from any personal experience. But each of the dimes in his Destroying the Silver Roosevelt Dimes 1946-1964 Competition are well-photographed and described in his set listing. And you can seen them all there. About 40% of this set has a star designation, and the collection is definitely worth a look-see if you're into Roosevelts.

 

--------And One More For Good Measure--------

 

Dr. S. Long Collection -- This is another of a private collector who just paid a little more to put their name on the slab. And while the Dr. S. Long name is not an important pedigree or even well-known name, the Roosevelts are worth briefly mentioning.

 

I have long looked long and hard for any information about Dr. S. Long, but have never been successful. I am even unsure if Dr. S. Long is a man or a woman. This is another case where I'm assuming the collector wishes to remain anonymous.

 

But, while they are quite uncommon, the Roosevelt dimes that I have seen with the Dr. S. Long name have had very nice dark colors, many with star designations and grades up to MS 68+. These are pretty little coins. If you ever get the chance and are interested in Roosevelts, this is another that you might want to check out.

 

1955 D Dr. S. Long Collection, MS 66 FT: http://outside-affiliatelinksnotallowed.com/k9oheam

 

If anyone knows of any other Roosevelt dimes with an important pedigree or notable name that I didn't mention here, please reply or send me a message.

 

Regards,

 

Mr. Smith Guesser

 

 

 

References:

 

¹AUCTION OF GREEK COINS, The New York Times, January 31, 1909: http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=F00916FD3E5D12738DDDA80B94D9405B898CF1D3

 

 

Further Reading:

 

 

Some Appreciate Rare Coin Pedigrees, Some Destroy Pedigrees, by Mark Ferguson for CoinWeek.com, November 15, 2012: http://www.coinweek.com/expert-advice/some-appreciate-rare-coin-pedigrees-some-destroy-pedigrees/

 

Pedigrees -- Why They're Important, by Ron Guth with PCGS, February 21, 2005: http://www.pcgs.com/News/Pedigrees-Why-Theyre-Important

 

Pedigrees and Numismatics, by Doug Winter of Douglas Winter Numismatics, July 23, 1999: http://raregoldcoins.com/articles/pedigrees-and-numismatics

 

See more journals by Mr. Smith Guesser

[jgenn]

Hi Luke,

 

Thanks for the well researched article about Roosevelt dime pedigrees. It really caught my attention when you mentioned Norweb because I have an 8 reales pedigreed to the Norweb collection.

 

I think it's a shame that I know so little about most of the previous owners of the coins in my collection. I record the information about who I buy from and I often inquire about the pedigree but usually find out that the coin was from an anonymous 'estate sale'.

 

It makes me wonder about the future of my collection.

 

I guess we never know when our own 'estate sale' will happen so I send out a wish to my fellow collectors that they have an enthusiastic heir or will sell and enjoy the proceeds of their collections first.

 

~jack

[erwindoc]

Interesting post. I have been heavily into Roosevelts for many years. I have a few from Mr. Cascio and Mr. Kiraly, but only 3 have the Kiraly collection on them. Both collectors have been at the top for many years as you mentioned. While I have not been able to afford coins in the caliber of the Gowman collection, but they are amazing coins.

[Mr. Smith Guesser]

Hey Jack,

 

Thanks. Yeah, I'm not sure why so many people wish to remain anonymous. To some extent I totally understand the desire for privacy. I'm sure there are some folks who want to keep their hobbies separate from their professions. I can totally imagine that in a profession like therapy, or security, or politics, you'd probably want as little personal information disseminated as possible.

 

Other folks, I'm assuming, want to remain anonymous for security reasons, or just don't want to be bothered. And I get that too. But it's not like any paparazzi will be beating on the doors of a coin collector for a photograph.

 

And, yeah, I do use a pen name myself. Obviously my name is not Mr. Smith Guesser. But I really use this name in an attempt to evoke "the word" when I write, rather than privacy. I would only be concern with privacy if I thought there would be a chance people would come knocking on my door. (Unless those people were Victoria Secret models. Then, not only would I go out of my way to be as public as possible, but the door would be unlocked and the house donned with neon lights to rival a Vegas casino.)

 

Thanks again,

 

Luke

[Mr. Smith Guesser]

Hi erwindoc,

 

Thanks. Yeah, I am sure that coins from the Gowman Collection are out of my budget as well. But at the same time, I'm not really trying to have the highest graded dimes in the world. Rather I'm just shooting for collecting dimes that I personally like for some reason. I have some nicely toned MS 64 and MS 65 silver Roosevelts, which I consider some of my favorites in the entire collection.

 

And yeah, I only wanted to include names that were on the slab itself. In general, I just use the name on a slab to sort of gauge what I'm buying when using one of the auction website, especially since the photos on those site aren't always the best.

 

There are other guys who I would have mentioned if their name was on the slab. I've gotten a bunch of really nice bright white dimes from Six Mile Rick through the message boards here, and have gotten some really nice toners from KryptoniteComics on eBay. But at that point, I may as well mention every collector in the world with a good eye. And the post was already long enough without that.

 

Thanks again,

 

Luke

[RichH]

Hi Luke

 

Great article with a perspective rarely seen.

 

I want to try and close one loop for you, that being Eliasberg's Roosevelt dime collection, as he was a Baltimorean. I was lucky enough to be at the Eliasberg sale in NYC the night of May 21 1996 when Lot 807 came up, and the 1913 Liberty Head Nickel crashed through the $1M barrier, hammering to Jay Perrino @ $1.35M and with the 10% juice (remember 10% ? ) a full purchase price of $1.485M.

 

I was able to add two Eliasberg Indian Cents to my collection, both are pedigreed in my Somerville Set. If you were there, that auction crowd was unlike any other I have seen, mostly all 3pc suits for the guys and women dressed to kill !

 

Anyway, back to dime and topic ( we tend to do this to each other ) I have the auction catalog for the May 20-22 sale, the Roosy dimes went on the 22nd ( I did not attend this session). Here is the interesting part, all of the Roosevelts were sold in the last lot of the sale, #1348 described as follows on pg 339:

 

1348 Gem Roosevelt dime set 1946 to 1975-S. One from each date and mint. Average business strike grade is MS-63 or better with Proof dates grading Proof-65. The 1950 to 1964 Philadelphia Mint issues are Proof. The 1966 and 1967 examples are from the Special Mint Sets. The San Francisco Mint issues from 1968 to the 1975 are Proof. Remainder grading average MS-63 or better. Many examples have light iridescent toning Recently housed in a Dansco album to facilitate sale. ( Total: 75 Pieces).

 

Lot sold for $990 with the "juice" or $900 hammer.

 

There is lots of interesting stuff here. If you would like a pdf of the catalog's page 339, or a pdf of the prices realized ( it has a great article on the 1913 Liberty Nickel ) I would be happy to send.

 

 

 

With a fistful of dimes ??!!!

 

Cheers !

 

Rich