The coin that started it all.

[HaydenTubbs]

Hi guys, I though that since I do post over here a lot, but don't often start my own threads(at least worthwhile ones ) that it was time I made up for it.

So I would like to tell you about how I started collecting and "the coin that started it all"

 

My Grandfather, Albert Guillemette, was the only son of my great-grandparents and when his father died at an early age in 1937 he became the man of the house at age 14. He took a job at Kresges' to help support his Mother and two sisters while continuing his schooling. He graduated in 1940 and was drafted in 1942 where he went through Naval training. Upon graduation he chose to serve in the Coast Guard where he began a successful career until he retired in the late 70's at the rank of Captain(equivalent of a Colonel to you Army/AF folk, although I'm sure you already knew that ) During his career he trained to be a rescue helicopter pilot, and was stationed all over the US, from Hawaii to California and twice in St. Petersburg, FL(a great city BTW!).He even was stationed in Newfoundland for iceberg duty. During this time he carried his "lucky" 1923 Peace dollar with him:

 

 

I don't know everything about this coin, such as when he first picked up this piece(although he had it with him when he was in naval training) and I don't if he was the culprit in a half-hearted attempt to make a coin ring, then a necklace and finally a tribute to the great Mickey Mouse(!), but I do know that it was almost always in his pocket or around his neck.

I enter this ordeal when I inherited this coin and a bag of other old US and World coins from my Grandmother at the age of 8,with a promise to never sell or spend them. I was intrigued by a few Barber coins and some Mercury dimes, coins I never new existed.

I wanted to learn more about them but no one in my family collected or had any real knowledge of coins( my dad and older brother both had coin folders as kids(decades apart, mind you!) and almost put together complete collections of Lincolns and Mercurys, both family favorites it seems, but grew out of it and sold the sets to a local dealer.) I bought folders for Lincoln cents, Mercury dimes(how surprising!) and Kennedy halves from a local book store and filled them up with coins from the bag(sorry no rare dates).I was excited when I found that there was a vest-pocket dealer at our local flea market and broke my meager savings on 90% silver to fill the holes. Soon after I picked up my first black book. There were several collectors at my dad’s work and when they found out I was a collector they graciously gave me some coins for my collection and did one of the best things that ever happened to me at the age of 12, introduced me to Coin World and Numismatic News. After that my collecting took off and hasn’t slowed down since, and as it’s known of Tubbs ,we are all entrepreneurs at heart and it wasn’t long before I started selling coins via mail order and the rest is history. Although someday I would like to go full-time I’m just fine being a wannabe dealer.

As for the coin itself it’s only worth a few dollars in bullion but the history and what this coin began are priceless. I used to carry it with me but no longer due for fear of losing it. It is prominently displayed in my office as a reminder that little things that may seem worthless or of little value can turn into something wonderful and in-valuable.

Thanks for reading through my thread and I am very interested in hearing your stories of “the coin that started it all”.

-Hayden

[Bruceswar]

Great Story....

For me it was when I was 7. I am not sure why, but we made it into a local coin shop and picked up a few whitman books to start filling up. But I was not as interested in the books as much as the other pretty coins. I ended up walking out with a 1887 Morgan Dollar as well that was well circulated for aobut 10 bucks. The reason I choose the 1887 was I thought the date read 1878 .. but non the less I was on my way.. going thru some pocket change and filling my whitman books. The worst thing was I used a hammer to put the coins in if they would not push in. I soon after got a red book and the rest is history. I still have the 1887 Morgan. I starting getting more coins and so on. Now there is no turning back ...

[CTcollector]

For Me - it wasn't one particular coin. Rather it was more like a steady flow of obsolete coins from my Grandfather when we went to visit him every week. He was a cashier for Good Humor (Ice Cream) in Brooklyn, NY and was responsible for collecting all the days loot from the Ice Cream truck drivers. As he sorted out the day's cash flow, he would note any coins that were odd or obsolete and would take them for himself and replace with current clad coinage. Every week, he would give me a few of these pieces. All the coins were always very worn and for the most part common dates of Wheaties, Walkers, Mercs, Buffs, Franklins, Peace and Morgan $. None the less, I was thrilled. The two coins that stand out in my memory (which I still have today) are a well worn 1865 3 Cent Nickel and a AU/BU 1921 Morgan Dollar.

[Hoot]

That's one horrifying Peace dollar! ... the horror... the horror...

 

Great story!

 

Hoot

[IGWT]

Thanks for sharing the story, Hayden.

 

Your thread is the perfect subject for me to post my first message in this forum! I started collecting Lincoln 1c, Jefferson 5c, and Roosevelt 10c from circulation when I was a kid. I wasn't at all familiar with earlier coinage. One day, when I was about 12 years old, my mother unearthed an 1883 shield nickel while we were weeding the vegetable garden . I had no idea what it was; then, after I was able to identify it by referring to the Red Book, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. It’s quite corroded, but the details are still sharp, suggesting that it had dropped out of someone’s pocket before it had seen much circulation. That one nickel, which I still have, was my "most valuable" coin for many years.

 

Pulling my childhood collection out of storage to share with my daughters rekindled my interest. That lonely shield nickel and the memories that it evoked called me to collect the series. My interest has since deepened and broadened.

[TomB]

I don't recall how I originally got into coins but I must admit that your Peace dollar is absolutely terrific and that if I had a coin like that I would also display it in a prominent area!

[kryptonitecomics]

I have collected on again off again since I was probably 8 or 10.....can't remember what got me into coins originally though I know what caused my first departure.............I had a small collection of Indian Head Cents and Buffalo nickels and one day my brother empty out my drawer and took all of mu coins and bought a joint

 

Everything was used at face value so an each indian head cent was worth one penny and so on..........that some brother is still a moran to this day

 

I also loved your story Hayden....and although I can only look at that coin for a few seconds at a time...it is quite cool

[SilverDollarMan]

Good story...maybe that coin stopped some bullets.

[AlixTCat]

Fantastic story, Hayden.

 

I started collecting when my grandmother gave me some of my deceased grandfather's old coins. She gave me quite a few older, silver coins. It was 1978 or so and silver went sky high. I was able to trade several of the 1964 dimes for other coins and the bug had hit.

 

After my parents divorced, I didn't get to see that grandmother much anymore. The HUGE collection that was my grandfather's was sold to the highest bidder recently when my grandmother died. I always thought she'd leave ME the coin collection in her will. But, alas, I guess my not ever visiting her because of the distance from FL to IL caused her to not leave it to me. C'est la vie. My fault for not making the journey. Now I wish I had. Not for the coins, but just to visit with her. But the coins would have been nice.

 

Thanks again for sharing, Hayden.

 

Jonathan

[chinook]

Great story Hayden.

 

my brother empty out my drawer and took all of mu coins and bought a joint

ROFL

[supertooth]

Hayden-----My dad was an only child and so was I. We lived with my grandparents. Ok---stage set. My dad gave me three old Japanese coins when I was 8 years old----I still have them. He had brought them home from the war. About that same time my mom and I were working on "My First Stamp Album" and we would get mail order stamps from "Harris Co." for just a few cents for each stamp. My grandfather [gramps] was retired but still picked up some extra bucks as a bartender [couple nights a week]. I used to wait up for him in the early A.M. hours----just to raid his change pockets. He always had a mess of Buff nickels and once in awhile a Walker or a silver dollar amongst his change. It was mixed in with a bunch of tobacco residue. He always had his Camels in his pocket and, naturally, in those days there were no "filter" cigarettes. I had to clean the coins from left over tums and tobacco. But I was lucky. My grandparents gave me [between them] six bucks a week in allowance---a fortune in those days. I was an "errand" boy for the nuns where I went to school. I was in charge of just about everything including the "milk and candy money". I would carry my 6 bucks around and each day trade off from their change----took home a mess of great coins before 1940. That was my cut off year. Before 1940, I saved it. Heck---one day the coin business did better than the milk business. I was 50 cents short of my own money to replace a Walker half. I calmly walked up to sister Rita Clare and told her that she was short fifty cents that day----I told her why and that I would bring in the extra fifty cents the next day. Naturally she went right along with me---I was respectful ofcourse. She was a big-boned German nun and was the schools prefect of discipline. If you misbehaved---well---you suffered the consequences of your actions. And she would even glare at me on occasion. But----what a wonderful youth. Now---50 years later---there isn"t any silver in change. But I still enjoy my Walkers as well as other coins. Full of stories am I. Bob [supertooth]

[HaydenTubbs]

Thank you for the kind comments and sharing your own stories,a great read!

-Hayden

[michael]

thread of the week

[Hoot]

She was a big-boned German nun

 

Like Tom or Greg.

 

Hoot