Chatter

Minutes of the 1122nd Meeting

The 1122nd meeting of the Chicago Coin Club was held June 13, 2012 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 22 members and 4 guests: Andrew Reiber, Vice President of the Illinois Numismatic Association, Darren Hooper, Dian Georgiev, and LuAnne Freeman.

A motion was passed to accept the May Minutes as published in the Chatter. Treasurer Steve Zitowsky gave a detailed report showing May income of $650.00, expenses of $100.00 and total assets of $20,236.49 held in Life Membership $1,670.00 and member equity $18,566.49. A motion was passed to approve the report.

Following the second reading of Steve Harrison’s membership application, a motion was passed to accept him into membership. First readings were held for the applications of Darren Hooper and Dian Georgiev. Following the reading of members with outstanding 2012 dues, a motion was made to drop them from the rolls: LeRoy Gayden, Greg Greene, Bernard Schwartz, A Ronald Sirna, and Russell Wajda.

Under correspondence, a letter from the American Numismatic Association informing the members the Chicago Coin Club would receive a 100-year membership plaque at the upcoming Philadelphia Convention. It was decided that Past President Robert D. Leonard, Jr., would receive the award on the Club’s behalf.

Mark Wieclaw, Host Chairman of the 2013 Chicago ANA Convention, announced all chairpersons were appointed and asked for members to volunteer to serve as assistant chairs. The appointment of Ray Dillard, Fenton, Michigan, as Honorary Convention Chairman was announced. The next committee meeting will be June 20, 6 PM, Offices of Harlan J. Berk Ltd, 300 West Washington, 13th Floor, Downtown Chicago.

Eugene Freeman spoke on his work at organizing a Boy Scout Clinic at the 2013 ANA Convention for scouts to earn their coin collecting merit badge. He spoke of how he hopes to have a new activity patch created for just the ANA Convention, so even scouts who already have the coin collecting merit badge would attend to earn this new patch.

First V.P. Elliott Krieter introduced featured speaker Andrew Reiber who spoke on Box Thalers & Coins. Following a question and answer period,Elliott presented Andy with an ANA Educational Certificate and an engraved Club medal.

Second V.P. Rich Lipman announced the evening’s ten exhibitors: EUGENE FREEMAN – coins from French Colonies in America, and gold escudo overdate from Colombia; CHUCK KNOX –50th anniversary Pearl Harbor commemorative coin set & $1 Hawaii note; JOHN CONNOLLY – 6 coin club medals;ROBERT D. LEONARD, JR. – ANA Coin Week token, and Medieval coinage of Europe; RICHARD LIPMAN – four $20 U.S. gold certificates; ROBERT FEILER – cut-out coin jewelry & German box thaler; DALE LUKANICH – Virginia Treasury notes, 2012 ANA Convention token, and 1.5 nummi of Justin I; MARK WIECLAW – 3 tetradrachms from Syracuse, and a sestertius of Domitian with an obverse brockage; ROBERT WEINSTEIN – Chicago area coin club medals; and ROBERT KULYS – large sized bank note, proof 2012 silver dollar, and 1944 CCC 25th Anniversary medal.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:50 PM with the next meeting scheduled at 6:45 PM, July 11, 2012 at the same location.

Respectfully Submitted,
Carl Wolf, Secretary

Speaker’s Wor[l]d
Box Thalers and Dollars

a presentation by Andrew Reiber
to our June 13, 2012 meeting

Andrew started collecting box dollars 14 years ago. In the program, he showed examples of the three major styles of turning two coins (or medals) into one box dollar. Along the way, he also showed some examples of what appeared to be a stack of coins. The earliest style used two coins with an external hinge; the seam is very noticeable. The second style gave threaded edges to both pieces (think pipe threads): one coin’s edge and one side were left untouched, but the other side was cut out to near the rim, and threads were cut on the inside of the edge; another coin had its diameter reduced, threads cut into the outside of the edge, and one side hollowed out; finally, the two pieces would be threaded together. The third style, introduced in the late 19th century, used an internal ring with a double hinge; the result was reminiscent of a clamshell, with no external hinges.

The first example shown to us was a threaded 1797 British penny. The original is a large, thick coin, so there was plenty of room to work with. A glance at the outside threading on the reverse half shows fine threading, a total of three or four threads in the thickness of that piece. When assembled, the piece looks like one coin. That was followed by a box thaler made from medieval European thalers; it has an external hinge, and a glance at the edge shows two original coins that are not perfectly stacked. Sometimes, these pieces are found with a suspension loop; there was no attempt at making it appear as an ordinary, original coin. The next item appeared to be a stack of 10 coins, with the top and bottom being 1909 Edward VII rupees; a nice example of a threaded piece.

A Belgian piece showed considerable wear; most likely from its long use as a pocket piece, and not because it was made from worn coins. Another piece showed a manufacturing error — a small irregularly shaped hole resulted from hollowing out too deeply. One piece contained mica discs on which hat, hair, and clothes were painted; they were to be placed over a picture of a person, possibly a child’s toy. A piece from the early 1800s used medals struck for this purpose, and it contains painted round paper slips that tell the story of a famine. A threaded 1811 French 5 francs has May 1823 engraved inside. And a mass produced item from World War I shows war scenes on many round pictures connected as an accordian.

It was not just European coins that were made into box dollars; among the U.S. coins that Andrew showed us were Morgan and Trade dollars, with Trade dollars extensively used for this. Many pieces were produced during the Columbian Exposition era, which also saw the introduction of the internal ring with a double hinge. The ring was placed inside one hollowed out coin and the other coin was fastened to the hinge. This method seems to be easier than threading two coins, but the two pieces still would fit poorly if the wokers were not skilled and careful. The use of the internal ring was mainly in the US. A shown 1879 Morgan dollar is spring loaded, but the openning pin is broken. A medal was made at the Columbian Expo expressly to be used as a case — from the inside, the obverse design is seen incuse. A Columbian Half contains a photo from the 1930s; using clothing and hair styles, as well as the photo print technology, a skilled person can confidently date a photo to within ten years.

As a collector, Andrew looks for many things. Uniqueness counts, but also the quality of the work as well as working order and completeness. A round piece of mica usually protected the image, and collectors hope to find all pieces in sharp condition. These pieces are noticeably lighter than an original coin; Andrew once was handling a slabbed Trade Dollar that seemed light — a close examination of the coin showed a circle on one side, in the field just inside the dentils. He bought it, openned the slab, and found he had a nice box dollar. Of course condition and quality are very important in determining price, but a good box dollar sells for more than the would the underlying coin. People collect these in many different ways: by underlying coin, by type of enclosed object, and by military uniform are just a few. A shown British 2 florin of Victoria holds the picture of a man in military uniform, while a stack piece has a Dutch coin on top and a US Large Cent on the bottom; a small watch is in the stack. That piece led to a short discussion of how people carried watches before wristwatches.

There are no maker’s mark on these pieces, but then Andrew collects only the pieces that were not mass produced. There is a small collector base for these; look closely in a dealer’s case, and you might find one waiting for you!

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Show and Tell

Items shown at our June 13, 2012 meeting.

1. Eugene Freeman showed some recent acquisitions:
   • A 1713 15 deniers made for use in French Colonies in the Americas; as a type that was used in French Canada, this is listed in the Red Book.
   • A 1710 30 deniers, for use in French Colonies in the Americas, and also acquired at CICF.
   • Acquired at a St. Louis show, a 1 escudo 1831/21 gold coin of Gran Colombia. It was purchased in a large collector made holder; the holder has much info about the country and coin, all on Dymo labels, giving it a unique look.
2. Chuck Knox brought back some souvenirs from a trip to Hawaii.
   • A US $1 note with a HAWAII overprint.
   • A 50th anniversary Pearl Harbor commemmorative medal set, manufactured by the Honolulu Mint. In different metals, these proof pieces show different U.S. ships.
3. John Connolly showed recently issued coin club medals:
   • From the Colorado Springs Coin Club, a set of three designed by Daniel Carr and struck at the Moonlight Mint. One side shows the obverse of an 1862 Pikes Peak gold coin, while the other side shows the founder of Colorado Springs mounted on a horse. The three medals, in copper, brass, and silver, have a satin finish.
   • A three piece set from the Madison County Coin Club of Huntsville, Alabama; issued in 2011 for the 100th meeting and tenth anniversary of the club.
4. Robert Leonard showed a range of items before his main theme, coins of one country found circulating in another:
   • A set of ten 2012 America the Beautiful quarters for his third place finish in ANA’s National Coin Week video treasure hunt, plus an ANA coin week token showing a cowry and a credit card.
   • A 1982 10 pence coin from the Bailiwick of Jersey; a piece that was given in change to his wife during a recent trip to the UK, though it is not legal tender there.
   • On a map of European trade routes during the 12th and 13th centuries, Bob noted that some routes crossed near Provins in the Champagne region of France, where the Chanpagne fairs were held; Roman merchants sold more than they bought at the Champagne fairs and returned home with the balance in cash. Thus the coins of the Counts of Champagne, minted at provins, circulated as far south as Rome, where imitations of them, called provisini, were made.
   • A denier of the counts of Champagne, from 1000-1125. The main device is a wool comb.
   • A denier of Count Thibealt, from 1125-1152.
   • A denier, of Henry I, that had likely been taken on a crusade (because it had been acquired in Beirut by a former owner).
   • Beginning about 1176, the Roman Senate minted square coins bearing a wool comb, copying those of Provins (provisini), but the legends mention the Senate and Rome. Bob had two examples, an early one circa 1176-1200, and a debased issue of circa 1275-1350.
5. Richard Lipman showed the evolving design of the large size $20 gold certificates:
   • An 1882 note with a brown seal and three printed signatures.
   • An 1882 note with a red seal.
   • A 1905 note with a portrait of Washington and a yellow field where the areas where nothing is engraved. Nicknamed the Technicolor Note.
   • A 1922 note with a yellow seal.
   Then Rich took us back to the first of the notes, and asked us, “Who is this bearded man?” The answer is President James Garfield, who died in office in 1881, two months after he had been shot. After a near-death experience as a young adult focused his attention, Garfield found success in the fields of education, politics, and the military.
6. Bob Feiler show a range of items:
   • Acquired at CICF: cutouts made from US coins, including a Walking Liberty half dollar, a 1928 Standing Liberty quarter dollar, a 1926 Peace dollar, a 1922 Peace dollar, and a Franklin half dollar.
   • To complement the featured pesentation, the mass produced 1916 Bavarian “'tin” box thaler containing 30 roundell scenes from the current war. Then Bob showed a description of that piece, photocopied from a catalog.
7. Dale Lukanich showed a range of items:
   • A token acquired at CICF from Kerry Wetterstrom. One side identifies Kerry as the Host Chairman for the 2013 ANA convention in Philadelphia, while the other side has the obverse design from the U.S. 1792 half dime.
   • A $5 Illinois & Michigan Canal Fund note; he noted the vignette of a man with a hammer.
   • A cut sheet of $10 Virginia treasury notes using the same vignette of a man with a hammer.
   • An ugly 1½ nummi of Justin I from Thessalonika; this is only the third specimen he has seen at auction.
8. Mark Wieclaw showed ancient coins:
   • A tetradrachm from Syracuse, Sicily; dolphins around bust of Arethusa on the obverse, with a quadrigga and Nike on reverse.
   • A silver two litra with dolphins around Janus heads, from Syracuse, Sicily.
   • A tetradrachm from Syracuse, Sicily, with no dolphins around Kore, the goddess of springtime.
   • An obverse brockage sestertius of Domitian, from Rome; worn and very green.
9. Robert Weinstein showed items from various coin clubs:
   • A brass token for the national bicentennial (1776-1976) from the Calument Numismatic Society, which the token identifies as having been orgainized in 1939 in East Chicago (Indiana).
   • A wooden 25¢ good-for from the Chicago Numismatic Roundtable in 1949, signed by all officers. Someone mentioned that it was imprinted upon a double-wide piece of mousetrap wood.
   • A 1905 Chicago Numismatic Society membership medal; the edge is lettered “not issued to a member.”
   • A 1965 Chicago Coin Club Literary Award for Arlie Slabaugh.
   • A 1913 brass membership card for Chicago Branch 1 of the American Numismatic Association. The lack of a member number punched into the back inicates this card was not issued.
10. Robert Kulys showed a range of items:
    • A 1923 large size $1 silver certificate.
    • A 2012 Star Spangled Banner silver dollar, in proof.
    • A 1944 Chicago Coin Club 25th anniversary medal in silver.

Minutes of the 2013 Chicago ANA Convention Committee

June 20, 2012

The second meeting of the 2013 Chicago ANA Convention Committee was called to order by Host Chairman Mark Wieclaw on Wednesday June 20, 2012 at 6:00 PM in the offices of Harlan J. Berk, 77 W. Washington, Suite 1320, Downtown Chicago.

The following members were present: Dale Lukenich, Sharon Blocker, Robert Feiler, Harlan J. Berk, Richard Lipman, Quentin Burrows, Tony LaPelusa, Ernest Armstrong, Steve Zitowsky, and Carl Wolf. Harlan was given a warm round of applause for providing dinner from Reza’s Restaurant and parking vouchers for those parked in the Wabash-Randolph Self Parking Ramp at 20 East Randolph.

Committee Reports:

1. Carl Wolf, Volunteer Committee Chairman
   • Volunteer Sheets were made available for everyone to take to local clubs.
   • Committee members were asked to keep the Volunteer Chairman posted when they visit local clubs to promote the convention. In addition to visiting local clubs, Mark Wieclaw expressed his belief that letters to local clubs would also help promote the event.
   • Robert Weinstein, 2011 Ambassador Chairman, is prepared to play a supervisory role among 2013 volunteers.
   • Volunteers are expressing how much they enjoyed working in 2011 and are prepared to offer their time again in 2013.
   • Several club members already volunteered to play bigger roles in 2013.
   • General questions were answered regarding the type of work volunteers are expected to perform.
2. Eugene Freeman, Scout Committee Chairman
   • In Gene’s absence, Chairman Wieclaw reported that Gene gave his report at last Wednesday’s Club meeting. He is working on the creation of a separate activity where Scouts can earn another patch, in addition to the Coin Collecting Merit Badge.
3. Dale Lukanich, Money Talks Chairman
   • Introduced Quentin Burrows as the Assistant Chairman.
   • Discussed possible local interest programs, including topics dealing with Abraham Lincoln.
   • Discussed having programs dealing with estate planning and the work that goes into issuing coin auction catalogs.
   • From Quentin Burrows’ position as an attorney, he is looking into setting up a continuing education program for lawyers that deals with coin laws.
   • Phil Carrigan and Robert Feiler plan to offer their volunteer hours to the Money Talks (the new name for the Numismatic Theatre).
4. Richard Lipman, Page Chairman
   • Food Menus in 2011 had some incorrect prices.
   • Age range for 2013 has yet to be determined by the ANA.
   • Plan to have several cases of water bottles available for the pages.
5. Marc Ricard, Exhibit Chairman
   • Not Present
   • Sharon Blocker and Paul Hybert would be assisting.
6. Promotion Material Discussion
   • Stickers: bear-shaped with ANA/2013/CHICAGO imprint. Committee of Berk, Wieclaw, and Wolf to make final decision and place order.
   • Business Cards, Drink Coasters, Book Marks, replica of Chicago Obsolete Currency, mini-CDs, stick drives, and QR codes were all discussed.
   • Everyone thought the 2011 local restaurant listing was good and hope to do it again in 2013. It was pointed out that smart phones now help visitors find local restaurants, plus provide reviews.
   • Mark urged to contact the Chicago Convention Bureau for support material.
7. Finances
   • Club Treasurer Steve Zitowsky reported he felt a second checking account would not be necessary.
   • It was reported that the ANA Board overturned the policy in effect at the 2011 convention requiring Clubs to pay for their table.

Members agreed to meet again on Wednesday, September 19, 2012 at 6:00 PM in the offices of Harlan J. Berk, 77 W. Washington, Suite 1320, Downtown Chicago.

The meeting was adjourned at 7:24 PM.

Respectfully Submitted,
Carl Wolf, Secretary
Chicago Coin Club

Our 1123rd Meeting

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

http://www.ChicagoCoinClub.org/

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