A look at what times were like when this 1832 dime was struck

[BillJones]

Sometimes I find myself losing sight of how conditions were when some of the coins we collect were in circulation. Recently I purchased this very high grade 1832 dime. The state of preservation is such that one could almost forget how this coin was made and how much times have changed since it was struck.

 

 

New Salem failed as a town because river boats could not navigate the river that flowed close to it on a regular basis. As a result it disappeared from the map until the 1930s when Civil Conservation Corp (CCC) reconstructed it. Here is a picture of only building in that reconstruction that is an original structure. It is the cooper’s shop where barrels and buckets were made. The cooper was one of the most prosperous men in town, and his home was among the better structures. Here you can see what life was like when this 1832 dime was stuck and its sisters were placed in circulation.

 

A price list from the time included the following:

 

Flour barrel - 40 cents

Pork barrel - $1.00

Wash tub or well bucket - $1.50

 

[bsshog40]

Interesting Bill. And to think you had to have 4 of these dimes to buy the cheapest barrel. Nice dime BTW. To be in the shape it is in after 175 years, doesn't look like it was used very much for purchases. It's a wonder how some of these coins have stayed in the condition that they have. I would presume someone that was more financially wealthy had most of these older coins just stored away somewhere. Times were too hard for poverty stricken people to save money in this condition for collecting purposes. IMHO.

[BillJones]

A lot of early U.S. coins had a tour of Europe before they came back into American hands. There were very collectors of U.S. coins in the U.S. in 1832. U.S. collectors didn't get into the game until 1857 when the Large cent passed from the scene. Then people really got interested in coins. A year later the mint began to sell Proof coins to collectors and issue them in sets on a regular basis.

 

So far as the prices go, you must remember than very few U.S. coins, like this dime, were in circulation in 1832. What money there was was mostly in the form of Spanish coins and private bank notes. The Spanish coins in gold or silver were the most popular because their value was assured. The bank notes were only as safe as the institution that issued them, and sometimes that reflected no safety at all.

[123cents]

Beautiful bust dime Bill and a overall great post.

[rbrown4]

Excellent Post and a reminder if not a prompt for us all to include some background and history when at all possible. This type of information is great to read and learn about.

 

Thanks for the post.

 

rey

[supertooth]

Bill Jones-----As always, your coins reflect the collector that owns them. This piece is no exception. Excellent coin and post.

 

My grandfather [gramps] was a cooper for the Coca-Cola company. He worked at the plant on Fort Ave. in South Baltimore. I remember as a child him bringing the syrup home in glass jars. We would make milk shakes with it----and was good for stomach aches too. I remember him telling me there was an art in rolling the barrels---as full, they were quite heavy. He would tilt them on end and then sort of fling them along as I remember him telling me. I still have his cooper tools till this day. I imagine he was still doing this in the 1940's. But this part of American History is now long gone pretty much. Bob [supertooth]