Chatter

Twenty One Months until ANA in Chicago

Mark Wieclaw has been appointed the Host Chairman for the ANA’s return to Rosemont in 2013. The announcement was towards the end of an October ANA press release; the headline refers to the ANA’s balanced budget for the next fiscal year, and the release contains many details from the board meeting held at the ANA show in Pittsburgh.

Minutes of the 1114th Meeting

The 1114th meeting of the Chicago Coin Club was held October 12, 2011 in the Chicago Bar Association Building, 321 S. Plymouth Court, Downtown Chicago. President Jeffrey Rosinia called the meeting to order at 6:45 PM with an attendance of 25 members and 2 guests, Charles Knox and Sheila Tucker.

A motion was passed to accept the September Minutes as published in the Chatter. Treasurer Steve Zitowsky reported September income of $1,413.96, expenses of $3,386.37 and total assets of $16,233.81 held in Life Membership $1,910.00 and member equity $14,323.81. A motion was passed to approve the report.

Following the second reading of Ernest Armstrong’s application for membership, a motion was passed to accept him into membership. The application of Charles Knox received first reading.

A letter from the American Numismatic Association was read, thanking the Club for returning $687.59 not spent at the recent convention. A letter from Donald Kagin was read thanking the Club for donating $45.00 to offset the rental of a projection screen for the meeting of the Society of Private and Pioneer Numismatists at the recent ANA Convention.

The November 9 meeting program will be the Annual Auction and members were reminded to submit a list of items for sale and/or get them to Bill Burd at Chicago Coin Company. The Club will hold a meeting 1 PM, Saturday, November 12 at the International Currency and Coin Convention, Rosemont. The speaker will be Pierre Fricke, Sudbury, MA on History of Collecting Confederate Paper Money, 1865 to Date. Members were reminded there will be no Wednesday, December 14 meeting. The Club’s Annual Banquet was moved to Saturday, December 10 at Marcello’s Restaurant, 645 W. North Avenue, Chicago. The featured program will be Michael Gasvoda on The Hunt Brothers’ Incredible Ancient Coin Collection. Reservations of $40 per person are required.

President Rosinia announced with regret Lyle Daly’s resignation as First Vice President. Lyle’s demanding work schedule with frequent travel was making it very difficult to attend meetings. Jeff reported the Club’s Constitution calls for the Board of Governors to fill any vacancy by appointment for the unexpired term of office.

Members were informed that two home robberies took place over the past month. Since burglars are prone to quickly convert stolen goods into cash, everyone was reminded that Club members and Chicago area coin dealers are ready to help spread the word through email so coin dealers can watch for the appearance of the stolen material. Bill Burd also told of a nationwide service www.numismaticcrimes.org that works with the Law Enforcement Community to explain the nuances of collectible coins and paper money.

The meeting’s featured program was given by Dale Lukanich on Obsolete Currency Issued for the Illinois & Michigan Canal, 1836-1844. Following a question and answer period, President Rosinia presented Dale with an engraved Club medal and ANA Educational Certificate.

President Rosinia introduced the ten exhibitors for the evening. BOB WALLACE: ancient Greek coins from Corinth & Ambrakia; RICH LIPMAN: Israeli coins showing different menorahs used to celebrate Hanukkah and U.S. note with “repeater” serial number; MELISSA GUMM: a $10 Illinois & Michigan note from State Bank of Illinois; ROBERT FEILER: 5 different Illinois & Michigan Canal banknotes and a Balbo cut-out coin; DALE LUKANICH: 1849 U.S. Large Cent cut in half, 1837 hard times token, 1901 $10 note Lewis & Clark Centennial Expo, and $10 Bank of Cairo, Illinois note; WILLIAM BURD: 3 gold medals honoring Paul Lauterbur, recipient of Nobel Prize for developing MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging); MARK WIECLAW: elongated coins honoring the recent wedding of his daughter and 4 ancient Roman coins; ROBERT WEINSTEIN: 8 silver punched coins from early India; SHEILA TUCKER: restrike of Brasher Half-Doubloon; JEFFREY ROSINA: copper ore samples found at a garage sale.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:45 PM and with the next meeting to be the Annual Auction, November 9, 2011 at the Chicago Bar Association Building.

Respectfully Submitted,
Carl Wolf, Secretary

Speaker’s Wor[l]d
Obsolete Currency Issued for the Illinois & Michigan Canal, 1836-1844

presented by Dale Lukanich
to our October 12, 2011 meeting

This 96-mile long canal between the Chicago and Illinois Rivers connected Lake Michigan and the Mississippi basin, becoming an important commercial link just before the railroads became prominent. Here in northeast Illinois, the remnants of the I&M Canal are our main link to early state history. Dale is from Will County, and he used slides to share his interest in canal history with us. After reviewing some historical details, he showed examples of notes from his collection.

There is a long pre-canal history, starting about 1670 when the French sought a fur trade route from the Great Lakes. Accounts differed, but the most optimistic view was that only the 20-foot Chicago ridge had to be overcome. Maybe that was the case in spring, when the Chicago canoe portage was shortened by high water. Digging a canal six feet deep, and long enough to reach navigable rivers, was the reality. The area was sparsely settled and little visited, so who could argue with claims that the canal would be ice free?

A canal was too large of an undertaking by the federal government, so nothing was done before Illinois statehood in 1818. The big question was how to pay for it. Probably state-issued bonds, but would they be backed by the state, by canal tolls, by land sales, or some combination? In 1822, Congress offered 90 feet of land on each side of the canal to the canal authority; but that would not have raised much money. The five received proposed routes, all following the same general route, had estimates of about $700,000. Nothing happened. In 1827, Congress offered alternate sections within five miles on each side of a canal, but still, no action. The main issue in the 1834 state election was the canal versus railroad. In 1835, the third canal commission started doing things; among the effects, the population of Chicago increased from 1,200 in 1836 to 74,000 in 1842.

Politics was involved during the construction. And money, when it was available. With one season of construction completed in 1836, the 1837 season was complicated by the nation-wide Panic of 1837. Construction usually halted when the money ran out, the state would devise a new source of money, and construction would resume for awhile. Repeated until completed in 1848. There are a number of different series of paper money available to today’s collector; Dale showed us examples from his collection.

The printer of the 1839 series is unknown; the notes are uniface, as typical for the era. The serial number was entered twice by hand: correct on the left, and with the digits in reversed order on the right. At least, that was the plan. Dale estimates that about 10% of the notes do not follow that pattern. He showed us issued and cancelled $1, $5, $10, $50, and $100 notes, and unissued remainders of the $2 and $100. The text includes Branch State Bank at Chicago.

The series for 1840 and 1841 identifies the printer, and, while still uniface, the designs consist of multiple small vignettes. The text identifies them as from the Illinois and Michigan Canal Fund. The shown issued and remainder examples included a $2.50 note with a cross eyed buffalo, and a note with the unusual denomination of $120.50.

Conditions were worse by 1842 — the canal had run out of money. So they created an Indebtedness series of notes. The primitive looking notes, still uniface, were printed on the back of uncut sheets of the earlier series; the new design is typically found printed perpendicular to the original printing. The notes are smaller than the earlier series, being about three-eighths of an inch shorter. When an individual unissued earlier note was available, they cut three-eighths of an inch off of the bottom before printing an indebtedness note on the back.

After showing us the above types of commonly found notes, Dale showed us the good stuff, including a small privately issued note for 6¼¢ as well as a bond coupon in pounds sterling. Within Chicago, the route has been filled in or otherwise obliterated, but away from Chicago, some original canal buildings can be found; some are privately owned, some are businesses, and some are visitor centers. Also, the tow paths have been turned into hiking trails. Much of the old route has been turned into a National Park.

Current Advertisers

Show and Tell

Items shown at our October 12, 2011 meeting.

1. After showing the coin, Bob Wallace asked and then answered the question, “Who is the goddess on the Corinthian style pegasi?” Pegasus appears on the reverse of this silver coin, while a helmeted female appears on the obverse. Many have considered the figure to be Athena, but the main deity of the city of Corinth was Aphrodite, while Athena was the deity of their nearby rival, Athens. To us, a helmeted Athena is a familiar ancient figure, but not so Aphrodite; there are a few ancient references to such a figure, among them one by a contemporary traveller who reported an armed Aphrodite in a temple. Bob presented two arguements for Aphrodite:
   • The coins of Corinth bear a small mark for a deity. Although many deities make an appearance, even Athena 3 times, its own deity, Aphrodite, never appears.
   • On a coin from one of its colonies, Ambrakia, Eros (the Roman Cupid) is crowning the deity. Eros never appears with Athena.
2. Richard Lipman showed a range of items:
   • Hanukkah is a relatively minor Jewish holiday, but it is well known in the West; part of the symbolism uses 8 lamps (or candles now). Richard showed some of the Israeli coins, issued from 1960 to 1990, that show different styles of menorahs.
   • Paper money has serial numbers, and different patterns of the digits are collected, such as a $2 repeater with the number G21242124A; this is also known as a stutter note.
   • A Thomas the Tank Engine souvenir booklet (of stamps) from Royal Mail; it is packed with information.
3. To complement the evening’s featured speaker, Melissa Gumm showed a $10 I&M Canal note drawn on the State Bank of Illinois. She also told of family outings, when a child, to sites along the Illinois and Michigan Canal.
4. Bob Feiler also complemented the evening’s featured speaker with most of his exhibits:
   • A cutout made from a silver Panama 1 balboa coin, maybe dated 1947.
   • A $2.50 I&M Canal banknote with a cross eyed buffalo as one of the vignettes, dated Nov 1, 1842. The piece was cut down from it original size to be used as the base for a $2.50 indebtedness note.
   • A $1 indebtedness note on the back of a $1 banknote with many vignettes.
   • A $100 indebtedness note on the back of a sheet of $1 banknotes.
   • A remainder $100.
   • A $150 on the State Bank of Illinois, date March 1, 1840. The 50 part of the denomination was entered by hand, at time of issue.
5. Dale Lukanich showed a range of items:
   • An 1849 Large Cent, cut in half; to break it, the coin was bent after being gouged.
   • An 1837 “Millions for Defence” Hard Times Token.
   • A Series 1901 $10 Lewis and Clark note, issued to stimulate interest in the 1905 Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition in Portland.
   • An 1839 $10 note from the Bank of Cairo in Kaskaskia (Illinois’ first capitol).
6. Bill Burd showed 14K gold medals, recently saved from the melting pot, awarded to the late Paul Lauterbur, a chemist who shared the 2003 Nobel Prize in Physiology for the development of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI):
   • The 1985 Kettering Prize from the General Motors Cancer Research Center.
   • The 1987 Medal of Honor from the Institue of Electrical and Electronic Engineers.
   • The 1990 Bower Medal from the Franklin Institute.
7. Mark Wieclaw showed a range of items:
   • Mark issued his first elongated coin in 1984, and he showed the four for his daughter’s recent wedding: on a cent, nickel, quarter, and half dollar.
   • An Antioch tetradrachm showing Caligula on the obverse and Agrippina on the reverse.
   • An Antioch tetradrachm showing Marc Antony on the obverse and Cleopatra on the reverse.
   • A didrachm from 180 BC Lycia with head of Zeus on the obverse and an eagle on the reverse. Look at that high relief!
   • An Ionia tetradrachm from 147 BC, with Diana on the obverse and a standing Apollo on the reverse.
8. Robert Weinstein showed early coins from India, traditionally dated to about 600 Bc; some others say 350 BC, which Bob thinks is too recent. These are not struck from a single die, but rather from a separate punch for each element.
   • A silver coin of the Magadha Kingdom, with symbols on the back added by money changers.
   • A silver coin of the Surasena Kingdom.
   • Finally a round piece! A silver coin of the Mauryan Empire; thicker than before, but still from individual punches on the obverse. Typically found with one mark on the reverse.
   • Another round silver coin of the Mauryan Empire, but this has banker marks on the reverse.
   • Four square silver coins of the Mauryan Empire. The planchet was cut from a bar, then brought to the correct weight by cutting at a corner; One mark is on the reverse. Numerous symbols appear on these pieces, including: elephant, military standard, shakra, human figures, and coconut trees.
9. Sheila Tucker showed a recent restrike, in 999 gold, of a 1787 Ephraim Brasher half doubloon.
10. Stopping at a recent garage sale, Jeff Rosinia saw and bought (for $15) about five pieces of copper; one was definitely manufactured, but not sure about the other rough looking brown or green things.

Annual Member Auction

Here are the lots known to us by October 25, 2011. The auction will be held near the start of the meeting, after a short time for lot examination; consignments are accepted until the auction starts.

Donation from Carl Wolf:

1. Piggy Bank, plastic, with battery operated counter that counts total “Deposits” as coins are inserted.
2. Bank, ceramic, in shape of a money bag.

Donation from Warren Schultz:

3. Pamphlet from the Royal Mint Isaac Newton at the Royal Mint 1696-1727, 1992; and Catalogue of Ancient Coins, Sotheby’s, Dec 3, 1981.

Donation from the New Zealand Mint at ANA:

4. Niue Island 2009 five piece Unc coin set. Each coin is minted in bronze, and plated in either nickel or copper.
5. Pitcairn Island, 2009 six piece Unc coin set. Each coin is minted in bronze, and plated in either nickel or copper.
6. Pitcairn Island, 2009 $2 “Year of the Ox.” One ounce pure silver, with original box and papers.
7. Romania National Bank Note, 1,000 Lei, 1998, graded by PMG as Gem Unc 66 “Show Sample.”

Donation:

8. ANA 75th Anniversay Medal, Diamond Jubilee 1891-1966, bronze, 3 inch diameter.

Consignment from Richard Hamilton:

9. American Numismatic Association “Centennial History,” published in two volumes in 1991 to celebrate ANA’s 100th anniversary.
10. American Numismatic Association “Anthology,” published in 1991 to celebrate ANA’s 100th anniversary.
11. Federal Coin Exchange Auction Catalogs issued as one, but including three different auctions in 1955, including CCC annual show auction Oct 29-30, 1955.
12. Guide Book to United States Coins, better known as the Red Book. Four copies: 1960, 1976, 1981, and 1982.
13. Photograde by James Ruddy, and Official ANA Grading Standards for US Coins by ANA.
14. US Large Size Paper Money by William Donlon, 1979, sixth edition.
15. Confederate and Southern States Bonds by Grover Criswell, 1980, autographed, second edition.
16. The Numismatist, January 1947.
17. Hard Times Tokens by Russell Rulau, 1980.

CCC Property:

18. Two VHS Tapes: Money: History in Your Hands and Rare Coin Magazine highlights of the ANA 1993 Baltimore convention.

Donation from Richard East:

19. Chicago Numismatic Society — commemmorative medal of the 50th monthly meeting, March 6, 1908.

Donation from Richard Dolnick:

20. ANA 40 Year Membership pin.
21. ANA 50 Year Membership pin.
22. ANA Medal with 22 attachments covering annual ANA conventions from 1956 through 1977.
23. ANA 84th anniversary convention medal, 1975, Los Angeles. Struck by Franklin Mint in sterling silver.
24. Elongated cent, “VOTE WILLY V.P. ’97”
25. Ceramic plaque of an ancient coin made in Greece.
26. Currency album with clear plastic pockets to hold Large Size US notes.
27. Double Eagle by Alison Frankel, 2006. The epic story of the world’s most valuable coin.
28. Guide to Biblical Coins by David Hendin, fourth edition, 2001.
29. Two photographs of Athenian Owl, framed.
30. Two photographs of Blood Thaler Hesse-Cassel, framed with copy of article in The Numismatist by Michael Dolnick.
31. Four photographs of Standing Liberty quarters, 1917 type I and 1917 type II, framed.
32. Three photographs of Bavarian Talers, framed with copies of two articles in The Numismatist by Michael Dolnick.

Donation:

33. Chicago Coin Club — Bulletin, annual issues for 1950, 1951, 1952, and 1976 bicentennial issue; four pieces.

CCC property:

34. The Numismatist, American Numismatic Association, 1941 thru 1948, 12 issues each year, all in fine condition. Sell as a lot. $200 reserve.

Consignment from Richard Lipman:

35. The Fantastic 1804 Dollar, tribute edition, Newman and Bressett, $10 reserve
36. Checklist and Record Book of US and Canadian Coins, (Red Book)
37. Standard Catalog of National Bank Notes, Hickman and Oakes, 1st edition
38. US Coin Digest, 7th edition
39. Official US Mint 50 State Quarters Handbook
40. Official US Mint 50 State Quarters Handbook
41. US Type Coins, Stack, 1977
42. US Type Coins, Stack, 1986
43. Blackbook Price Guide to US Coins, 2008
44. Blackbook Price Guide to World Coins, 2008
45. The Official eBay Guide, Kaiser and Kaiser
46. North American Coins and Prices, 18th edition, 2005
47. Inside Story of the State Quarters, Bowers
48. Adventure Across the States: Collecting State Quarters and Other Coins, Whitman
49. Red Books, 2008: one soft cover spiral and one hardcover spiral bound.
50. Blue Books, 2005 and 2008
51. Official Guide to Coin Grading and Counterfeit Detection, Travers and Dannreuther
52. Official ANA Grading Standards for US Coins, Bressett
53. The Treasure Ship SS New York, Bowers (signed), $15 reserve
54. 100 Uncirculated, consecutively numbered, BEP wrapped $2 bills, of Series 2003A, $200 reserve, anything above goes to the club as a donation.
55. 100 Uncirculated, consecutively numbered, BEP wrapped $2 bills, of Series 2003A, $200 reserve, anything above goes to the club as a donation.
56. 100 Uncirculated, consecutively numbered, BEP wrapped $2 bills, of Series 2003A, $200 reserve, anything above goes to the club as a donation.

Consignment from Phil Carrigan:

57. CE Bullowa, MBS June 20, 1994: 772 lots, 4 bw plates, cPR
58. British Copper Coins (and their values) Part I Regal Coins, 107pp, photos & Part II Tokens, 235pp, photos (CaC, 12 x 18 cm, prfct binding)
59. Lawson & Co, Cat of Old and Scarce Books, 1939 Sutton Coldfield England, CacC36pp, 808 items
60. Jim Wilson’s House of Hobies: World Paper Money Price List, 10 lists #58 thru #98 (not inclusive)

Preview of Our December Banquet (1116th Meeting)

Our 1115th Meeting

Important Dates

Chatter Matter

All correspondence pertaining to Club matters should be addressed to the Secretary and mailed to:

CHICAGO COIN CLUB
P.O. Box 2301
CHICAGO, IL 60690

http://www.ChicagoCoinClub.org/

Club Officers

Contacting Your Editor / Chatter Delivery Option

chatter_editor@yahoo.com

The print version of the Chatter is simply a printout of the Chatter web page, with a little cutting and pasting to fill out each print page. The web page is available before the Chatter is mailed.
If you would like to receive an email link to the latest issue instead of a mailed print copy send an email to chatter_editor@yahoo.com. You can resume receiving a mailed print copy at any time, just by sending another email.