• Contents of this Issue
  • Notes
  • CCC Meeting Minutes
  • Radiating Sun — The First United States Money Made in California
  • Peter the Great Beard Tax Tokens
  • Platinum “Coins” Found in The Field Museum Collection
  • Exhibits
  • Another 2015 CSNS Note
  • Convention Committee Meeting Minutes
  • Upcoming Meeting
  • Important Dates
  • Chatter Matter
  • Share This Issue!
• Other Chatter Issues
  • Prior Issue
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• Contact Editor

Chatter

2 Months until ANA in Chicago

This is the last Chatter issue before the ANA’s deadline to submit your Collector Exhibit application — the completed application has to be received at ANA by June 19. The application and rules for exhibiting are on the ANA’s web site, at https://www.money.org/numismatic-events/convention-exhibits. Please take advantage of this opportunity — the ANA will not be back here until 2019!

Carl Wolf is looking for volunteers to work during the show. He anticipates a free daily parking voucher for each volunteer who works at least four hours on that day. Contact Carl at carlwolfco@msn.com for more details — we do not need to know your schedule now, so email Carl before you forget.

Remember, August 11-15! Email any questions and comments to chatter_editor@yahoo.com and someone from the local committee will respond.

Minutes of the 1157th Meeting

The 1157th meeting of the Chicago Coin Club was held May 13, 2015 in the Chicago Bar Association Building, 321 S. Plymouth Court, Downtown Chicago. First Vice President Richard Lipman called the meeting to order at 6:45 PM with an attendance of 24 members and 1 guest, Mark Schechter.

V.P. Lipman thanked William Burd for donating a new scanner/document viewer used to project exhibits, which was accompanied by a warm round of applause. He also thanked the Secretary for creating an introduction for each monthly speaker.

A motion was passed to accept the April Minutes as published in the Chatter. Treasurer Steve Zitowsky reported for the month of April revenue of $879.00 expenses of $456.11, net income of $422.89, total assets of $25,255.19 held in Life Membership $1,830.00 and member equity $23425.19. A motion was passed to accept the report.

The membership applications of Dr. Richard Feely and Rhonda Scurek received a second reading and a motion was passed to accept them into the Club. The application of Mark Schechter received first reading.

The Secretary delivered a report from the Central States Numismatic Society Convention which included the names of seven members who received eleven exhibit awards* and ANA President Walter Ostromecki’s presentation to the Club of a “Points of Numismatic Light Program.”

ANA Convention Host Chairman Jeff Rosinia gave an update on a committee meeting with Rhonda Scurek at the CSNS Convention, and pointed out the availability of literature near the room entrance. Jeff gave a detailed report on the cost of creating Club medals for the 2015 ANA Convention and a custom acrylic holder for the 2011, ’13, ’14 and ’15 convention medals. A motion was passed to spend up to $4,500.00, and the Board was given the authority to tweak the numbers if quantities were under or over-guessed.

Second V.P. Marc Stackler introduced the featured speakers: Mark Wieclaw on Russian Beard Tokens of Czar Peter the Great, and Steve Zitowsky on Platinum “Coins” Found in The Field Museum. Following a short question-and-answer period, Marc presented each with an ANA Educational Certificate and engraved Club medal on a neck ribbon.

Marc introduced the ten exhibitors for the evening. EUGENE FREEMAN: 1850 U.S. half cent; RICHARD HAMILTON: Willys-Overland Co. stock certificate; JAMES DAVIS: 4 Civil War store cards; MARK WIECLAW: double-struck new style Athenian tetradrachms (89-88BC), 1965 U.S. mint sets, and elongated coins from CSNS; ROBERT FEILER: U.S. Morgan dollar made into a lighter, 1839 $2 note from Branch Bank at Chicago, and 1794 U.S. large cent copy from Eureka Mint; RICHARD LIPMAN: numismatic themed campaign flyers used for his son’s successful election as high school treasurer, plastic coins from Transnistria, and $5 bank note from Pocahontas, Iowa; STEVE AMBOS: 1903 Hardware Convention letter opener fashioned from a nail, 1723 South Seas Company shilling, and 1906 bond, 2000 Kronen, Credit Anstalt set up by the Rothchild’s in Austria-Hungary; DREW MICHYETA: story of 2 Koblenz kriegs geld coins; DEVEN KANE: 2 17th century luiginos, and 2 coins from the Kingdom of Mysore; JEFF AMELSE: U.S. half cent and 2 large cents with cuds and die cracks.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:09 PM.

Respectfully Submitted,
Carl Wolf, Secretary

*Chicago Coin Club members who received an exhibit award at CSNS Convention: Second Place, Foreign Coins Prior to 1500 AD, Bruce Bartelt, “The King as Hero”; First Place, Foreign Coins After 1500 AD, Tom Uram, “Kings and Queens of England Through Maundy Money,” also, the John J. Pittman Award for Best Educational Exhibit; Second Place, Medals, Robert Fritsch, “Four Award Medals by Antoine Bovy”; Second Place, U.S. Paper Money, Dan Freeland, “Selected Michigan Nationals from Charter 8723”; Third Place, Foreign Paper Money, John Wilson, “Guatemala 5 Pesos Issue 1895-1915”; Second Place, Tokens, Mark Wieclaw, “Peter the Great Beard Tokens”; Third Place, Miscellaneous, Robert Feiler, “The Thrill of the Hunt,” also the People’s Choice Award, and Best First Time CSNS Exhibitor.

Speaker’s Wor[l]d
Radiating Sun — The First United States Money Made in California

a presentation by Robert D. Evans,
to our April 25, 2015 meeting

The California Gold Rush started propelling the United States from being a developing country and onto the path of being a world power. Bob followed that opening statement with a review of the travel options available between California and Washington in 1850. The overland route was the slowest, the faster and more economical way was by way of Panama (some months), and by ship around South America offered some advantages (the record time for that route was 89 days). Those lengths were for a one-way trip, so it should be obvious that two-way communication between Washington and California was slow. Remember, this was years before a telegraph line was available.

With all of the gold coming from California, two new regular coinage denominations were introduced: a small $1 coin and the large $20 double eagle. (Bob noted that collectors new to US gold might be confused by the $20 coin — although it is called a double eagle, there is only a single eagle on the reverse! All makes sense once they know that the $10 gold coin was called the eagle.)

Although it is hard to feel sympathy for people with much gold dust and nuggets, there are difficulties in carrying on commerce using dust and nuggets of uncertain fineness. There were some private mints in California, but their quality and acceptance varied. California’s Senator William Gwin tried to have Congress authorize a mint in California, but the states with existing mints (Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia, and Louisiana) or desirous of a mint (New York) — that is ten senators and many representatives — were against the idea from the start. Facing reality, Gwin introduced a measure to authorize the Secretary of Treasury to contract with some well-established California assaying firm to, under the supervision of a US Assayer appointed by the President, mark ingots and bars with a stamp of the United States, their fineness, and their value. Washington expected the result to be ingots in a range of values, from $50 to $10,000.

Augustus Humbert was sent as the US Assayer, and he took dies with him to California. Moffat & Co. was selected as the local assaying firm to perform the actual work. Bob showed an excerpt from Edgar Adams’ Private Gold Coinage of California, 1849-1855: a notice from Moffat & Co that it would accept gold dust, starting on or about February 1, 1851, to be made into gold pieces — these Assay Office pieces were the first legal tender items made by the US in the west. Officially, these pieces were ingots and not coins. The obverse die carried no value; the word THOUS appeared in a banner above the central eagle, and the widely spaced letters D and C appeared below the eagle. Each piece would have its fineness stamped into the space before THOUS, with the value in dollars and cents stamped before the D and C. We saw a picture of a piece of 880 fineness with a value of 50D. This system would allow the ingots to have many slightly different values, but commerce would be simplified if all pieces had the same value.

Adams states Humbert arrived in San Francisco on January 30 or 31, and quotes The Pacific News of February 1 as stating the first coin was shown to them the prior day. That is a very short timeline, or Adams is wrong. Bob showed us an excerpt from the January 9 Daily Alta California which listed, among the passengers arriving on the Tennessee, the US Assayer Augustus Humbert. This gives us a more reasonable timeline.

Produced over a span of two months, there are four known varieties of these pieces, known as K-1 through K-4 (K is for Kagin who identified them). The same obverse die was used for all four varieties, while the reverses are similar but different: a few concentric circles at the center, maybe surrounded by at attempt at rays, with much of the remaining area filled with concentric wavy scalloped lines (the lathe work mentioned by Adams). Not only is the K-3 piece unique, but its reverse also is unique (at least partially engraved instead of completely die struck). Returning momentarily to Adams, we saw mention of the March 20-25, 1885 Woodward sale having a “unique trial impression from the dies of the California octagon Fifty Dollar piece — Reverse, Lathe work.” Bob then asked us three questions:

• Could the K-3 be this “unique trial impression?”
• Does that mean it could also be the “first coin” shown to The Pacific News on January 31, 1851?
• What does Woodward mean by “Lathe work?”

The rest of Bob’s program focused on his ongoing effort at answering these questions. A complete pedigree of K-3 would be useful, but some gaps remain even after help from others. Start with the 1885 Woodward sale mentioned above — there is no such sale. Former ANS librarian Elizabeth Hahn found there is an 1865 Leavitt-Woodward sale, but the catalog is not illustrated. As we learn more, we ask more questions. How did it arrive in the Woodward sale, and is it really the K-3? What happened between 1865 and 1927 when it appeared in London, illustrated as part of the Peltzer Collection of American Coins offered by Glendining. What happened between 1927 and 1956 when it appeared in New York, illustrated in the June 19-20 New Netherland auction? Regarding the MacAllister that is mentioned for that period, audience member Mark Borckardt mentioned that a Macallister contributed to the Morganthau catalogs of the 1930s and ’40s.

The four K-1 through K-4 varieties were struck using the same obverse die. What can the pieces themselves tell us? John Dannreuther has examined mint state examples of the four varieties; the condition of the ribbon at the right side of the eagle seems to place K-1 as the earliest die state. Bob’s conclusion, for now, is inconclusive, and he continues to research this matter. If you missed this meeting and wish for more details than in this article, David Lisot made a video of the meeting. And we look forward to a future publication once conclusive evidence has been found.

Speaker’s Wor[l]d
Peter the Great Beard Tax Tokens

a presentation by Mark Wieclaw,
to our May 13, 2015 meeting

Mark started collecting these tokens in the 1980s, and he completed his collection before 2000. There are only four collectible types, and their prices are much higher now. These tokens are reminders of just one of the efforts, by Peter the Great, to modernize Russia (on the Western model).

Peter was born in 1672, and at the age of ten he became co-ruler with his brother Ivan V;. he was named Tsar of all Russia in 1696 upon the death of Ivan. He visited Western Europe several times, and he issued many decrees aimed at westernizing government and society. An absolute ruler can do that, especially one known to be cruel and tyrranical. His attempts at reform were extensive, even extending to men’s beards.

It is said that in 1697, at a party to welcome Peter back from a visit to London, Peter clipped the beards of his guests as he hugged and kissed them; many of the leaders took the hint and were beardless at a banquet held a few days later. Shortly after that, a tax was levied on anyone wishing to have facial hair, but priests were exempt. The level of taxation was:

• 100 Rubles — Merchants of the first class.
• 60 Rubles — Courtiers and Officials of all ranks.
• 60 Rubles — lesser merchants and shop keepers.
• 30 Rubles — Persons of the lower orders, coachmen, servants, and lower–grade church employees .
• 1 Kopek — Peasants and city visitors.

Upon payment a token was received and was to be carried at all times. Failure to produce the token on demand would lead to a fine or imprisonment. The first series of tokens was produced in 1698, but these are not collectible as only one piece is known, and it is in the Hermitage Museum. One report says 50,000 were ordered, while an official document discovered in 1930 says 15,903. We know these were used, because an Austrian diplomat described them in a letter home.

The tokens of 1705 are the only originals that collectors will encounter. They are round, struck in copper, and have a mustache and beard with the inscription “Money taken” on the obverse. The reverse shows a Russian eagle and the date 1705. There are two obverse and two reverse dies, with no cross linkage known. All, except one, have a counter-stamp (two headed eagle) on the obverse, although we do not know why or where they were applied. Both sides have a laurel wreath around the boarder, and no mintages are known. Novodels, as official copies are known, do exist in copper with no counter-stamp. There are also rare pieces struck in silver. The quick way to determine the difference between an original and a novodel is the alignment of the nose and the letter ‘A&rdquo above: on the originals the nose is centered with A, while novodels have the nose to the right side of the A. Some pieces were gold plated, but this was done privately.

A new, square shaped token, was proposed but not issued in 1724. This is another noncollectible piece as only a unique pattern exists.

In late 1724 the Senate was shown the 1724 pattern, and on December 13 they directed that 2,000 such pieces be struck with the 1725 date. The obverse says “Tax taken on the beard” with the date. The reverse is blank except for a double boarder of leaves (outer) and triangular foliated ornaments (inner). There were actually 2,600 pieces struck and supposedly placed into circulation. However, on May 17, 1728 a Senate office asked for guidance on what to do with the 2,600 tokens on hand. On June 12, the Senate directed that they be returned to the mint, and melted down to be re-coined as Kopecks. At least one of these escaped the melting pot. Novodels do exist for this piece also. There are two slightly different obverse dies and one reverse die. On some of the tokens using the second die, the edge is lettered “The beard is an extra burden.”

Peter the Great had died on February 8, 1725, and the idea of Beard Tokens was dropped by 1752 — even though some novodels were struck into the 1780s.

Speaker’s Wor[l]d
Platinum “Coins” Found in The Field Museum Collection

a presentation by Steve Zitowsky,
to our May 13, 2015 meeting

During his more than 20 years working as a volunteer at The Field Museum in Chicago, Steve has seen many interesting things. But he still can be pleasantly surprised, as when he recently was cataloging part of the geology collection. This area encompasses, among other things, minerals, meteorites, amd gem stones.

Under the heading Minerals, Platinum were three coins, all identified as from “The Kunz Collection.” Dating back to the museum’s original collection, these had been donated by George Frederick Kunz, a self-taught mineralogist whose expertise landed him at Tiffany & Co — he was a vice president by age of 23! As a special agent for the US Geological Survey, he headed up the US mining and mineralogical exhibits at the 1893 Columbian Expo.

The collection has three platinum coins, but the first two are counterfeits of gold coins! A 1771 8 escudos showing an armored bust of Carlos III has the gold plating wearing off of the high areas, and it appears someone hacked about 80% of the way through it with a sharp blade; it weighs 26.88 grams instead of the expected 27.07 grams. An 1856 100 reales of Isabella II has edge damage and is in two pieces — the top fifth was hacked off somehow; the two pieces weigh a combined 8.44 grams instead of the expected 8.33 grams. The last piece was genuine — an 1829 3 rouble coin of Russia, weighing 10.32 grams instead of the expected 10.35 grams — one of 43,000 minted.

An obvious question today would be, “Why make a counterfeit with precious metal?” The short answer is, “Platinum was not precious at that time!” Originally discovered among the leftovers from refining silver in Spanish colonial South America, it was named platino or “little silver.” It occurs natively, as well as in some nickel, gold, and copper ores — it was first found in South America, and then in the Ural Mountains of Russia. Platinum has a high melting point and can be difficult to work; with a little alloy metal added, the result can have the same density as gold. Its discovery was announced in 1748, and the first documented official shipment to Spain was in 1766. After summarizing platinum’s its early history in South America, Steve discussed what is known of the counterfeits.

We know of contemporary counterfeits of European gold coins with dates from the 1850s to the 1870s. Made from platinum and gold plated, some circumstantial evidence points to Barcelona or the surrounding area as the source. In 1979, G.P. Dyer published an informative paper on the counterfeits of British coins in the Bulletin on Counterfeits, but Steve has not been able to locate comparable studies of the counterfeits of French and Spanish gold coins. Dyer found no evidence of their manufacture after about 1880; possibly the rising price of platinum rendered continued counterfeiting uneconomical. A correctly attributed gold plated platinum sovereign, dated 1872, appeared in the December 2007 World Numismatic Auctions — it did not sell.

Steve concluded the program by wondering about the fate of these counterfeits — as the gilding wore off and their true nature was revealed, were these pieces scrapped as junk, or was their value as platinum recognized?

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Show and Tell

Items shown at our May 13, 2015 meeting,
reported by Marc Stackler

1. Eugene Freeman brought an 1850 USA Braided Hair half cent he had recently acquired. The design was used 1840-1857, but business strikes were minted in only eight of those years (1849-57, excluding 1852). Three of those years — 1849, 1850, and 1857 — are ranked as Rarity 2 (500-1,250 known) by Breen. It was the last design for half cents, which were discontinued as part of 1857 coinage reform.
2. Richard Hamilton talked about his stock certificate of the Willys-Overland Company, 100 shares common stock. The certificate was printed by American Bank Note Company. Willys-Overland was in Toledo, OH, and was the principal company among 3 that produced jeeps in World War II. The company has since had several owners, including Daimler Benz. As of Oct 2014 the current owner is Fiat.
3. Jim Davis brought 4 copper tokens.
   1. Patriotic Civil War token, Army-Navy.
   2. Civil War store card, J. Pearce, Lingomer, Indiana. There are less than 200 known of this copper coin. (Jim went on to explain that “store cardsrldquo; are token coins issued by stores to be spent / redeemed at the store. All of the store cards shown tonight were the equivalent of one cent, and about the size of a contemporary small cent.)
   3. Civil War store card, Gustavus Lindenmueller, a bar owner from New York City.
   4. Civil War store card, M.L. Marshall Department Store, Oswego, NY, 1863. Among its departments was Rare Coins.
4. Mark Wieclaw showed various items.
   1. Two 1965 Special Mint Sets. 1965 was one of the years when the Mint made no proof sets, only sets containing special (supposedly better than normal) strikes.
   2. Two elongated coins left over from the Central States convention. One of them was an “error,” with only half the CSNS design rolled onto this 1970-S cent.
   3. Athens “new style” tetradrachm, 89-88 BC, double struck. Oddly, only Athena’s head is double struck, not the dotted border or any other design elements. Another ancient coin expert remarked it can happen that way.
5. Bob Feiler regaled us with 3 interesting finds.
   1. A well-executed copy of a 1794 Large Cent, produced by the Eureka Mint. It complies with the Hobby Protection Act (is marked COPY), and is sold as a souvenir.
   2. $2 Branch State Bank At Chicago, obsolete bank note, dated May 1, 1839. The note had been repaired with cellophane tape. Being an inexpensive item, Bob plans to remove the tape and replace it with archival tape. The method involves soaking the note in cool water until the adhesive loosens, then using a tool to apply just enough pressure for the archival tape to be applied. Removing cellophane tape and replacing it with archival tape doesn’t repair the note. The note is still “Poor,” and now in addition to tape damage it will have been soaked in water. But, the adhesive in cellophane tape damages the paper; archival tape will not do any more damage than has already been done.
   3. A cigarette lighter made from two 1921 Morgan dollars. It still works!
6. Rich Lipman presented 3 exhibits.
   1. Various campaign flyers for his son’s successful run for high school treasurer. The items ranged from flyers with money puns to funny bills (3 Stooges money, e.g.).
   2. Four small plastic coins from Transnistria, a self-proclaimed “country” (territory in Moldova along the border with Ukraine, with many Russia speakers). These are the first plastic coins issued by a “sovereign nation.”
   3. $5 National Bank of Pocahontas, Iowa, ca. late 19th century, with a vignette of Benjamin Harrison.
7. Steve Ambos discussed a few items.
   1. A letter opener fashioned from a nail which could be driven into concrete. It was offered as advertising at a 1903 Hardware Convention.
   2. 1723 South Seas Company shilling. The company was created for the English crown to refinance debt. Shares in the company skyrocketed on speculation, and then collapsed. The silver coins were minted only 1 year, during the speculation craze.
   3. 1906 Bond, 2000 Kronen, Credit Anstalt. Credit Anstalt was set up by the Rothschild’s in Austria-Hungary. It survived as an Austrian bank after World War I. In 1931 it defaulted. The default created a ripple effect causing other European banks to fail, deepening the financial crises already started from 1929.
8. Drew Micheyta related a story of two Koblenz kriegs geld coins. Thirty years ago he used to buy 5-lb bags of silver. He sorted out the crowns for his collection. The rest of the coins went back into bags, ignored all these years. Recently he started going through them and found a 1918 25 pfennig war issue (kriegs geld). He told his wife he recognized this coin, went into the basement, and pulled out a 1918 10 pfennig kriegs geld. His wife, amazed, said “You can’t remember where you put your keys yesterday, but you remember coins from 25 years ago!” Drew replied, “That’s the miracle of numismatics!”
9. Deven Kane presented 4 coins to the attendees:
   1. The first two were acquired from a group lot, thinking they were two Luigini of Tassarolo, but instead acquiring two different types: an original French coin of Louis XIV dated 1658, and a 1667 imitation from Fosdinovo with a portrait of Anne-Marie Louise d’Orléans. Luigino was the name given in Italy to coins imitating the petit louis, a French silver coin one twelfth of a Louis (Douzième d’Ecu). The coins were originally minted by Louis XIII when France moved to machine made coins, and they became very popular in the Ottoman Empire where they were used as jewelry and on clothes. The demand was so insane that the Turks were soon paying twice the value of the silver. This naturally soon led to imitations by various sources around Europe. The demand was so great that the Turkish soldiers laying siege to the Venetians in the 20-year siege of Candia demanded to be paid in Luigini. The problem was that the Italian mints soon started debasing the silver, fakes became rampant, and the Turks got very annoyed at paying good silver at inflated values for debased silver. And the English (who had traded for the coins) were annoyed that they were getting paid in coins with about a third of the silver value they should have had.
   2. A fanam of King Kanthirava Narasa from the Kingdom of Mysore. The obverse is a stylized representation of the deity Narasimha from the statue at Hampi (the capital of the earlier Vijaynagar Empire), unusual enough that we know the source of the imagery.
   3. The next coin is a Pavali (¼ rupee) of the Kingdom of Mysore. The dancing deity is often supposed to be the goddess Chamundi, the local patron deity, but Deven prefers the interpretation that it is a representation of Balakrishna (i.e. young Kirshna) dancing with a ball of butter (the young Krishna supposedly loved butter and would constantly raid the pantry). The issuing monarch is Krishnaraja Wodeyar III which could support an interpretation that this was his namesake on the coin.
10. Jeff Amelse showed some interesting early copper die states.
    1. 1804 half cent, C-6 “spiked chin,” state 11 with massive cuds on the reverse.
    2. 1846 large cent, variety N-12 in state e,  with obverse rim cuds from Stars 2-5 and 5-6. He had submitted it to Bob Grellman for attribution and grading in April, 1999; Bob replied that it was tied for Condition Census #3 of 9 known at the time.
    3. Multiple examples of the N-12 variety of 1831 large cent, showing the progression of an obverse die crack through cud formation. States include:
       1. State A, VERY VERY early with die break starting at Star 2 and ending with just a point showing beyond Star 13.
       2. State A, very early with crack extending beyond Star 13, but not branching to the rim.
       3. State A-, early with a weak crack extending beyond Star 13 and branching to the rim. This branch would later define the end of a cud.
       4. State B, two point break, with cud extending through 2 of 5 points of Star 13.
       5. State C, 3 point break, which is a rare die state.
       6. Jeff does not have the final State D with cud covering Stars 12 and 13, known as the “Harpooned Whale.” He showed a picture of a VF example currently on eBay for $3850.
    4. Multiple examples of varieties N-2 and N-3 of the 1849 large cent. These varieties share similar but different extensive crumbling on the reverse. There are 33 states of N-2, and 22 states of N-3. Jeff showed 7 examples of N-2 in States l, m-n, p, two in q, t, and terminal state gg. He showed 3 examples of N-3 (Rarity 4 as a variety), including states f and two in terminal state v.
    5. 1852 large cent, N-6 with strong cud Stars 10.5-12. This is a reasonably common late date with cud. In general other late dates with rim cuds are very rare.

Another 2015 CSNS Note

At 12:30 PM on Friday, April 24 at the 76th Anniversary Convention of the Central States Numismatic Society (April 22-25, 2015), American Numismatic Association President Walter Ostromecki made the following presentation to the Chicago Coin Club at their information booth on bourse floor. The certificate reads:

AMERICAN NUMISMATIC ASSOCIATION

CHARTERED BY CONGRESS 1912

WALT OSTROMECKI — 58TH PRESIDENT

‘POINTS OF NUMISMATIC LIGHT PROGRAM’

CHICAGO COIN CLUB, ILLINOIS

IS HEREBY RECOGNIZED FOR YOUR COMMITMENT AND SERVICE TO THE NUMISMATIC COMMUNITY IN THE STATE OF ILLINOIS. YOUR PASSION FOR SHARING THE FUN OF THE NUMISMATIC HOBBY WITH CLUBS, COLLECTORS AND THE NON-COLLECTING GENERAL PUBLIC OF ALL AGES IS A SHINING EXAMPLE FOR US ALL! BECAUSE YOUR EFFORTS HAVE MADE A PROFOUND DIFFERENCE IN THE NUMISMATIC EXPERIENCE OF MANY OTHERS, ANA PRESIDENT WALTER A. OSTROMECKI RECOGNIZES THIS OUTSTANDING NUMISMATIC COMMUNITY ACHIEVEMENT BY DESIGNATING YOU AS ‘A POINT OF NUMISMATIC LIGHT’. I AM PROUD TO HONOR YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUING EFFORTS TO NUMISMATICS!

May 2, 2015
Number 100 of 110

A group assembled to hear Walt make many complimentary remarks of the Club and express the ANA’s happiness to return to Chicago in 2019 to help celebrate the Club’s 100th Anniversary. He stated that the Chicago Coin Club is only the third club to receive ‘A POINT OF NUMISMATIC LIGHT recognition; certificate no. 100 was given to the Club with their upcoming centennial anniversary in mind. First V.P. Rich Lipman accepted the certificate on behalf of the Club.

Minutes of the 2015 Chicago ANA Convention Committee

May 20, 2015

The sixth meeting of the 2015 ANA Convention Committee was held May 20, 2015 in the offices of Harlan J. Berk, Ltd. 77 W. Washington, Suite 1320, Downtown Chicago. Host Chairman Jeffrey Rosinia called the meeting to order at 6 PM with the following committee members in attendance: Steve Zitowsky, Mark Wieclaw, Harlan Berk, Melissa Gumm, Marc Stackler, Elliott Krieter, Robert Feiler, Rich Lipman, and Carl Wolf.

1. Harlan Berk was thanked for providing the meeting place and dinner.
2. Jeff had a telephone conversation with Rhonda Scurek with the following updates:
   1. The interactive floor plan on the Web is accurate.
   2. The ANA has received some good responses for the Money Talks Program.
   3. The number of exhibit and page applications is low, but typically there is a big rush the week before the deadline arrives.
   4. The ANA is working very hard at getting members to preregister on the Web.
3. Money Talks Speaker Medals
   1. Carl Wolf reported that the Board and general membership approved of another Standing Lincoln medal, and it is on order.
   2. This 2015 version will be a bronze medal with a digitized color giving the appearance of a sunset on the Lincoln side only.
4. sBudget, Hotel Rooms, Future Committee Scheduling — Jeff Rosinia
   1. A sheet with convention dates was passed around, and chairman were asked to check off the dates they will need hotel rooms.
   2. The third Wednesday, June 17 and July 15, will be the committee’s last two meetings before the convention.
5. Committee Reports:
   1. Honorary Host: Harlan Berk
      1. Working at gathering items for the Silent Auction, and intends to speak to several dealer friends to offer their home and collection for a private viewing.
      2. Brought up and lead a discussion on an activity of a Tuesday night, such as dinner cruise on Lake Michigan, bowling, etc.
      3. Carl Wolf reported on a telephone conversation with the New York Numismatic Club, and their members are very interested in holding another joint social dinner.
   2. Scout Chairman: Eugene Freeman, unable to attend
   3. Volunteer Chairman: Carl Wolf
      1. Reported a shortage of 20 volunteers, and requested help from committee members.
      2. Reported the status of Floor Captains had improved over the past 30 days.
      3. Reviewed how many extra volunteers would be needed in the exhibit area and at the Money Talks Program.
   4. Money Talks Chairman: Mark Wieclaw
      1. The deadline for submitting program proposals is May 22nd.
      2. The application is on the ANA web site.
      3. Discussed a need for several dependable volunteers.
      4. Also helping Harlan with the Silent Auction, and told of items he has gathered.
   5. Exhibit Chairman: Melissa Gumm
      1. The deadline for exhibit applications is June 19.
      2. Received email from Mark Lighterman, National Exhibits Coordinator.
      3. Believed that she, Paul Hybert, and Sharon Blocker would be the full time exhibit workers.
6. Miscellaneous:
   1. Jeff reminded all Chairmen and Assistant Chairmen to fill out the VIP Registration Form if they wish to receive a discounted banquet ticket.
   2. Jeff will try to get more media coverage the week before the convention begins.

The meeting was adjourned at 7:03PM.

Respectfully Submitted,
Carl Wolf, Secretary

Our 1158th Meeting

Important Dates

Unless stated otherwise, our regular monthly CCC Meeting is in downtown Chicago on the second Wednesday of the month; the starting time is 6:45PM.

Chatter Matter

http://www.ChicagoCoinClub.org/

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

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.

Sharing this complete Chatter issue with a friend is simple. Just let them scan this code into their smartphone!