Something funny from the San Francisco Mint - 1917.

[RWB]

A little something for a new year smile:

 

 

OK...where were the guards who were on patrol? How did he get dies? How did he get planchets? Was everyone deaf and blind? Why wasn't the metal shortage detected at the end of the first day? How long had this been going on?

 

Check your 1917-S halves?

[coinman_23885]

Very neat; thank you for sharing!

[DaveG]

Wow!

[cpm9ball]

OK...where were the guards who were on patrol? How did he get dies? How did he get planchets? Was everyone deaf and blind? Why wasn't the metal shortage detected at the end of the first day?

 

Roger, he must have read your book, From Mine to Mint.

 

Chris

[AHFreak]

A

 

Check your 1917-S halves?

 

Check them how, or for what?

[AcesKings]

Being this article was written in April, would they have already switched the dies to the reverse mint mark?

 

From the article "the press was working imperfectly on account of unskillful handling"

 

So, there's a few more than what the Mint records show out there somewhere, probably weakly struck, or possibly off center, misaligned dies, etc?

 

 

[physics-fan3.14]

That's awesome.

 

Is it really counterfeiting if you are using the mint's silver and the mint's machines and the mint's dies?

 

It seems more like "unauthorized production" - but they aren't counterfeits.

[CaptHenway]

Another "Midnight Minter?"

[BillJones]

OK...where were the guards who were on patrol? How did he get dies? How did he get planchets? Was everyone deaf and blind? Why wasn't the metal shortage detected at the end of the first day? How long had this been going on?

 

 

Those security procedures were probably in the same place they were when Samuel Brown produced those five Liberty Nickels at the Philadelphia Mint in 1913. It is my impression that there no way to make a coin without making some noise in the process. It just goes to show how lax security can be at times.

 

It's a shame that Mr. Butler didn't add his own mint mark to his creations. Then we would have had a "1917-BS" half dollar to add to our collections.

[Conder101]

In many businesses/organizations janitors and maintenance personnel often have keys that will allow them access just about everywhere. That might be how he managed to get access to the dies and planchets, I don't know how lax they might have been with the presses and planchets back then. Did they count and lock up the planchets every night or just weekly or monthly? Were the dies removed from the press every night or did they just lock the press so it wouldn't run? (I believe to takes a bit of doing to properly set the dies so I could see them just locking the press rather than having to go through the set up process every morning.)

 

Another way to avoid the silver shortage might be to bring his own silver in to replace what he used. The silver in the coins was worth significantly less than the face value of the coins so it would still have been profitable to do so.

 

The real problem would be how to hide the noise of the running press. The guard/guards couldn't have missed that. Which means that at least one of the guards would probably have had to be in on the scheme as well.

[njf]

The real problem would be how to hide the noise of the running press. The guard/guards couldn't have missed that. Which means that at least one of the guards would probably have had to be in on the scheme as well.

 

Or heavy sleepers

[RWB]

A follow-up check of newspapers produced this additional information:

 

Mint superintendent estimated that 12 oz of silver were used.

Butler was convicted of counterfeiting via unauthorized manufacture.

He was given 3 months in jail and a $100 fine.

 

Of course, he was also fired. (The fine was more than 15% of his annual income)

[PerryHall]

Wouldn't the dies be put in a safe or vault when not being used? I doubt that they would give the janitor the combination to the safe/vault. Or perhaps they left the dies in the press over night since they wouldn't have to go through the trouble of adjusting the spacing the next morning.

[RWB]

Ahhh...the story does not tell all that happened....

 

In checking my research notes I found that the SF Mint was doing three shifts per day in April 1917. This was to help with the coin shortage in the east. This had begun in May 1916 and continued into late 1917.

 

A different newspaper article added the info that Butler did his private minting "between shifts, early in the morning." If these are correct, then Butler used a press with planchets already in the feeder and dies installed. He simply started the press and pocketed a few new halves before the next shift came in.

[Conder101]

So it wasn't counterfeiting, it was conversion of government property and theft.

[RWB]

He was convicted of counterfeiting, but your description is more accurate. Butler was tried and convicted within 3 weeks of his arrest.

[CaptHenway]

Sounds like he took a handful of planchets that were in a bin waiting to be struck, stuck them in a feed tube and turned the press on. I wonder how he messed up the press so that somebody noticed? Maybe he let the planchets run out and clashed the dies?

[Kurtdog]

A follow-up check of newspapers produced this additional information:

 

Mint superintendent estimated that 12 oz of silver were used.

Butler was convicted of counterfeiting via unauthorized manufacture.

He was given 3 months in jail and a $100 fine.

 

Of course, he was also fired. (The fine was more than 15% of his annual income)

That's only $16.50 worth of coins. I think the $100.00 fine was kind of harsh, .

 

[Kurtdog]

Being this article was written in April, would they have already switched the dies to the reverse mint mark?

Yes, I was wondering that. Same reason, he was busted in April.

[RWB]

The presses had automatic feeders. The planchet hoppers held enough for about 20 minutes of operation. (SeeFrom Mine to Mint for description and photos.)

[Kurtdog]

He may have just come across a hopper with planchets in it. Then, "Hmmm, I wonder what this switch does?"

[RWB]

Possible -- the SF Mint presses had individual electrical switches and clutch levers. The Philadelphia Mint still used the 1901-installed group electrical circuit for all the presses, and individual clutches.

 

Unfortunately, I've found nothing with Butler's side of events. I'll check the Secret Service files next time I get to NARA. Maybe there will be an agent's report.

[DaveG]

If he was tried and convicted, shouldn't there be records from the appropriate Federal District Court?

 

(assuming they're still available, of course.)

[ArmyBud]

This is one of the most interesting post I have ever read!! Just think...if there was a way to tell, how much this variety would be worth? Great reading....

Bud

[Kurtdog]

Possible -- the SF Mint presses had individual electrical switches and clutch levers. The Philadelphia Mint still used the 1901-installed group electrical circuit for all the presses, and individual clutches.

 

Unfortunately, I've found nothing with Butler's side of events. I'll check the Secret Service files next time I get to NARA. Maybe there will be an agent's report.

Just found this. This is from an OCR of Page 5, San Francisco Chronicle, April 11, 1917:

 

“Superintendent T W H Shanahan of the Mint said Butler has made a practice of starting one of the electric presses in the early morning before the arrival of the day force and running off some coins. It Is alleged Butler pocketed the coins. Damage to the press on account of unskillful handling resulted In the discovery...”

[CaptHenway]

So he did it multiple times. I wonder how he damaged the press?

[CoinZip]

cool post thanks.....

[RWB]

Most of the reports do not use the word "damaged." I suspect that Butler left something out of adjustment or incorrectly aligned.

 

There is almost no way to tell what Butler might have done because the toggle presses existing today have been extensively modified. We also do not know what modifications the mint made to its 1917 presses.