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Vol. 10, No. 4 April, 2011
"The Panama-Pacific Commemoratives: Early NCLTs" "A Canadian Vehicle Commemorative" "Revolutionary War Dirty Tricks" Above: The first "issue" of the Ottawa Mint. A 50-cent-size bronze test token used to adjust the mint machinery. The Mid-Island Coin Club, Dues: $12 per year Mailing Address: Mid-Island Coin Club, c/o West Coast Stamp & Coin, Executive Officers: President: Chris Linfitt
The meeting of March 10 was attended by 31 members and guests. Speaker for the evening was Dietmar Gritzka who spoke on prospecting for gold in the north, complete with photos and displays. It isn't too early to be thinking about an upcoming summer event. The 2011 Vancouver Island Exhibition is scheduled for August 19, 20 and 21 , 2011. For the past number of years, the Mid-Island Coin Club has hosted an information table in the exhibition hall and hope to do so again this year. Something like 18 time slots must be filled, each member volunteering for a 4-hour shift with one other member. Last year's volunteering was not so good: some members had to serve two or more shifts and in one instance, only a single member was present. So perhaps we'd better give some thought as to whether or not we will continue participating in this function at all. Interested volunteers may contact Joan Ryan at the meeting or: e-mail at Joan.Ryan@shaw.ca Joan is also attempting to build a distribution list of members to remind them of upcoming events. These will be sent out bcc (blind copy) so that your e-mail address is not visible to the recipients to protect your privacy. As long as there have been anything like coins, there have been counterfeits, attempts by the less-than-scrupulous to cheat the public. There has even been an electrum-coated silver example of a Lydian stater from the very dawn of coinage, some time before 600 B.C. So counterfeiting has been going on for a long time, at first to fool the general public and in more recent times, joined by those specializing in conning collectors. The things coming out of China these days are really pretty poor - but dangerous. At the April meeting, Jeff Ross will deliver a talk on the subject of this fakery and what the late Bob Willey termed "jiggery-pokery". Don'tcha dare miss it.
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The Great Mid-Island Coin Auction (April, 2011)
The Panama-Pacific Commemoratives: Early NCLTs.
On 15 August 1914 , at almost the same instant the First World war was breaking out in Europe , the Panama Canal opened to traffic between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans . An American project, its completion was celebrated in the city most positively affected by it - as well as a secondary celebration of its recovery from the "'Quake of 1906" - San Francisco . It was held February 20 to December 4, 1915 . Formally termed the "Panama-Pacific International Exposition", the war made it predominantly an American affair. But it still turned a profit. A certain amount of advance publicity was given by the release of a set of commemorative stamps in denominations of 1, 2, 5 and 10-cents depicting Balboa (the first European to cross the isthmus of Panama), a view of the locks and a couple of San Francisco views. The first issue was in 1913; the second in 1915-16. They may be told apart by their perforations (10 for the earlier, 12 for the later).
Contemporary view of one of the Panama-Pacific pavilions, 1915.
Laid out on the shores of the San Francisco Bay , the Exposition stressed classical elegance and water (reflecting ponds, fountains, etc). Although the pavilions appeared to be substantial, few were, being mostly constructed of "staff", a cheap composition resembling stone on the outside but not durable. Except for the quality-built " Palace of Fine Arts ", the rest were demolished directly after the exposition's closing. The idea of a special coin issue to mark the event came somewhat later, even though there had been a number of such special issues before, dating back to the Columbian Exposition of 1892. Most of those, incidentally, had been sorts of NCLTs, selling for above face, the first being the Columbian half-dollar of 1892 priced at $1.00 each. Even more of the latter were struck for 1893 and, when they did not all sell at this price, the residue was simply released into general circulation at face - to general collectors' discontent.
"Money of the World" exhibit, Panama-Pacific Exposition Ferran Zerbe (ca. 1900)
The necessary legislation for the production of the special Panama-Pacific coins did not get under way until 1915 itself. Bill S-6039 did not pass Congress until January 5th, authorizing the striking of a maximum of 3,000 $50 gold pieces, 10,000 quarter-eagles, 25,000 gold dollars and 200,000 commemorative silver half-dollars. The legislation also specified that the half-dollars, at the discretion of the Treasury Secretary, could be "coined or finished and issued from the machinery to be installed as part of the exhibit of the United States Mint . . . and for the purpose of maintaining the exhibit as an educative working exhibit at all times the coins so minted may be remelted and reminted." Although the coins were to be struck either at the San Francisco Mint or at the United States Mint exhibit there, the dies themselves had to manufactured at the parent Philadelphia Mint since they alone had the facilities. Congress appropriated $5,000 for designs, a sum that was to be repaid by the "Panama-Pacific International Exposition Company". The first design winners were Evelyn Beatrice Longman of New York for the $2 ½ gold coin and Paul E. Manship, also of New York , for the half dollar. Neither successfully completed their contracts: Evelyn Longman took seriously ill and could not meet the Treasury deadline and neither could Manship, who also withdrew. In both cases, only some preliminary sketches exist. The other designers, Charles Keck for the gold dollar and Robert Aitken for the $50, completed their work; the Longman and Manship designs were rather hurriedly taken over by the Mint in the person the Chief Engraver, Charles E. Barber. Robert Aitken also designed the official Exposition medal for which he received an award of $1000; the size of a double eagle, it was sold in bronze, gold-plated bronze and silver versions but (for some reason) the Mint objected to issuing it in "coin fineness" and the silver medal was only .890 fine silver instead of .900.
Panama-Pacific Exposition Commemorative Half-dollar, 1915-S Actual size: 30.6 mm; Weight: 12.50 grams; .900 silver Designers: (Obverse) Charles E. Barber; (Reverse) George T. Morgan. Both Mint staff. Original issue price: $1.00; Final mintage: 27,134
The obverse of the half-dollar was a distinct departure from Barber's usual plain, "functional" designs. According to the official description, it depicted " Columbia scattering flowers while attendants with a cornucopia signify the boundless resources of the West". In the background is the Golden Gate illuminated by the rays of the setting sun. Morgan's reverse is somewhat more "standard" but is notable in that it is the first time the motto "In God We Trust" appears on a U.S. commemorative coin.
Panama-Pacific Exposition Commemorative Gold Dollar, 1915-S Actual size: 15 mm; Weight: 1.672 grams; Fineness: .900 gold; Issue price: $2.00; Total Issue: 15,000
Charles Keck's obverse of the commemorative gold dollar depicts a Panama Canal labourer, the two dolphins circling the denomination on the reverse are emblematic of the meeting of the two oceans. Although some of the public mistook the labourer for a baseball player, it was generally well received.
Panama-Pacific Exposition Gold $2 ½ "Quarter-Eagle", 1915-S Actual Size: 18mm; Weight: 4.18 grams; Fineness: .900 gold
Barber also excelled himself on the commemorative Quarter-Eagle. The obverse depicts Columbia riding a seahorse, carrying in her left hand a caduceus, emblematic of trade and commerce, with which she invites the world to use the new Canal. The reverse is more of a throwback, apparently being a sort of re-working of a pattern half-dollar from 1877 (Judd 1512).
Panama-Pacific Exposition Commemorative Gold $50 (Round) Actual Size: Ca. 43mm; Weight: 83.59 grams; Fineness: .900 gold Issue Price: $100; Actual Mintage: 483 pieces
Panama-Pacific Exposition Gold $50 (Octagonal) Specifications: As last. Actual Mintage: 645
It was the two gold $50 commemoratives that attracted the most attention, not the least being the first time this denomination had been struck by the federal government. Designed by Robert Aitken, the coins showed Minerva, goddess of wisdom, skill, weaving, contemplation, agriculture and horticulture, on the obverse while the reverse displayed an owl, sacred to Minerva and the accepted symbol for wisdom, perched on a branch of Western pine. In addition, the rims of the octagonal coins showed lines of dolphins, again symbolic of the meeting of the two oceans at Panama . The $50 pieces also caused the most controversy, even over the design. Despite the fact that Minerva forms an extremely minor part of the arms of San Francisco , collectors failed to see much connection between the designs and the Canal - or city, either. The premium charged, $50 per coin, was thought to be exorbitant at a time when ordinary working men earned but a couple of dollars per day. Distribution handling was also a problem: as large, heavy, soft coins, they should have been literally handled like eggs but were not, nicks, dings and scratches all too common, even usual. To this day, these coins are priced from "AU" (the worst) to the few "MS-65"s, even though none would have ever been spent as a coin. The chief of the exposition's Coin and Medal Department was Ferran Zerbe, a well-known - but not especially well- regarded - numismatist. As a past president of the A.N.A., Zerbe had been accused of ballotbox-stuffing and his hyperbole and untruthful statements concerning the distribution of the gold Louisiana Purchase pieces back in 1903 still rankled. The Coins of the World exhibit at the exposition were under his jurisdiction - and in this he did well. It was also the point of sale for the exposition's commemorative coins and medals, and again he was back to "not quite right". Zerbe had his work cut out for him from the very start. The government's tardy beginning made the issue of the first coins by the exposition's opening day of February 20 impossible. All the dies had to be produced in Philadelphia and so pressed was the Exposition Company for time that they were able to have the dies for the $1 prepared by the Medallic Art Company of New York , a remarkable instance of dies for a federal coinage being manufactured by an outsider. The San Francisco Mint was not only unequipped to produce dies, it also did not have the capacity to strike a coin such as the new $50 pieces. Only in late May was a medal press weighing 14 tons and with a striking capacity of 450 tons shipped to San Francisco from the home mint in Philadelphia . Through all of this - and even from the very first - Zerbe was assuring the numismatic world that the coins would appear "very soon" and that pre-ordering was away up. It wasn't. Finally, on June 15, exposition officials and VIPs of all stripes were on hand to witness the striking of the first $50 gold piece, an "octagonal" that was purchased by Charles S. Moore, president of the exposition, for $100. Unfortunately, the dies for the round $50 broke on the 63rd strike and new tools had to be manufactured in Philadelphia . Not until July 20 were complete sets available for delivery. Meanwhile Zerbe was feeding news releases to the Numismatist such as "A large market is being found for complete sets from banks of the country, the exposition supplying single and double sets mounted in metal frames and under glass for public display in the banks. . . . Several banks have ordered from 5 to 20 sets". (Hurry! Get yours now before they're all gone). It was also noted that each set and $50 gold piece would be delivered in a leather case "without additional cost"; considering the premium of double face being charged - in 1915 dollars - this was very large of them.
Leather case with plush and satin. Framed wall display behind glass. Although the original legislation stipulated that any coinage left over as of the closing of the exposition on December 4 was to be returned to the San Francisco Mint for melting, Zerbe managed to extend the deadline for several more months. In a letter of 20 December 1915 to dealer Lyman Low, Zerbe quoted something of discounts: although the gold dollar was now available only in sets, there were two sets. The first was a "short set" consisting of the silver half-dollar, gold dollar and $2 ½ piece at $7.00 per set, six sets for $35. The second consisted of a single $50 (shape your choice) at the original $100 but with a "short set" included as a premium. The full original sets remained as before. Finally, he could move no more and in March, 1916, the exposition officially notified the San Francisco Mint that they would accept (!) no more of the coins and were returning the excess on hand for melting. As the dust settled, it became clear that only about 300 complete sets, both in leather case and wall display, had been sold. Of the 1500 each of the $50 pieces, 854 "octagonals" and 1,017 "rounds" were sent to the melting pot. Final "surviving population" of the various denominations were: Half-dollar (27,134); gold dollar (15,000); gold Quarter-Eagle (6,749); round "Quintuple Eagle" (483); octagonal "Quintuple Eagle" (683). Except for the $50 pieces, the singles sold for the rest of the denominations were housed in nothing more substantial than paper envelopes. As usual with NCLTs, early owners could expect nothing more than to get their money back for the first few years. Usually less. A couple of years after the exposition's close, dealer Max Mehl could offer a round $50 piece, in the original plush case, that was "as perfect as is known" for the "original" price of $100, meaning that person from whom he bought it realized less than the issue price. But during the Roaring Twenties, with all its loose money and speculative atmosphere, the gold Fifties rose nicely in value - after all, their mintages were very low. Although the values hiccupped during the Depression, they continued their rise thereafter. Today, a decent one will set you back about $50,000 with the round one a little more. Even the empty cases are now scarce enough as to warrant an illustration and separate listing in today's auction catalogue. Perhaps it's instructive to note that the A.N.A. Convention of 1915 was held in San Francisco in conjunction with the exposition. It set an all-time record for low attendance with less than two dozen members showing up.
A Canadian Vehicle Commemorative.
Canada . 20 Dollars, 2000. Commemorating the "H.S. Taylor Steam Buggy" Silver: .925 fine. Actual size: 38 mm. Weight: 31.103 grams Part of a 3-coin set of $20 pieces with a total mintage of 44,367 coins for all. This was the first set to feature a 24-kt gold-plated holographic cameo.
No one definitely knows who invented what we call the "car" with many different claims and supporters thereof. Even Leonardo da Vinci designed self-propelled vehicles but it was not until the invention of the steam engine - particularly the compound steam engine of James Watt in the 1770s - that such a machine became even faintly viable. Oddly, we know exactly who invented the automobile: Richard Trevithick, an English mining engineer, 1801. Why? Because he called his invention an "auto-mobile". Not that Canadian inventors were being slouches. In 1851, Thomas Turnbull of Saint John , N.B. demonstrated his "Andromonon Carriage". This was not a steam carriage but a very "green machine". It was a three-wheel vehicle which was driven by a crank operated by hand-levers at the driver's seat which he pulled and pushed. It operated well enough on level, smooth, hard surfaces but not so much on hills, rough or soft ground, mud, snow, etc. Quite possibly the driver would have expended less energy walking. Perhaps we should note Canada 's first "motorist" insofar as he bought and imported some type of "horseless carriage" rather than building it himself. This was Father Belcourt of Rustico, P.E.I. who first demonstrated his wondrous vehicle to his parishioners there on St. Jean Baptiste Day (June 24) in 1866. Which brings us to the man honoured on the commemorative coin above: Henry Seth Taylor, a watchmaker of Stanstead, P.Q. who in 1867 built Canada's first self-propelled vehicle, a steam carriage (of course, it would not be surprising to find that some other gifted tinkerer had preceded him, so scanty are the Canadian records). In any case, the "Taylormobile" is recognized as such - or at least one powered by machine. Taylor had taken a steam engine and mounted it on the back of a carriage, demonstrating it numerous times. Geared low, the machine sacrificed speed for power and moved at something like a brisk walk. Consequently, Henry saw no need to equip the vehicle with brakes and was rudely surprised one day to find himself careening down a hill at a speed he had not foreseen. He panicked and jumped just before it piled up in a ditch, thus bringing to an end his wondrous invention.
Background: A drawing of Taylor 's steam carriage. Overlaid in front: Photo of the 1893 electric car of William Still and Frederick Featherstonhaugh.
Steam locomotion had its problems, the belching smoke from its firebox aside. The power-to-weight ratio was very low and waiting until "the steam was up" before being able to drive was inconvenient. It was to address these problems that the team of William Still and Frederick Barnard Featherstonhaugh perfected the first electric-powered vehicle manufactured in Canada in 1893. Built in the shops of the Dixon Carriage Company in Toronto , it not only ran quietly and well but also boasted the conveniences of a folding roof, pneumatic tires and electric headlamps. On the strength of this car was established the Canadian Motor Syndicate. But electric cars had their shortcomings as well. The Featherstonhaugh-Still vehicle, for instance, had a top speed of 20 km/hr and could run only one hour on a fully charged battery. Even before this, automobile technology had started down the path of "what was to be" with the invention in 1886 by German engineer Karl Benz of an internal combustion engine powered by a volatile cleaning fluid called "gasoline". To this day, there still exists a "Mercedes-Benz" car. Very good and very expensive. Oddly, many of them are now powered by an engine invented by Benz' compatriot, Rudolf Diesel.
The gasoline-powered vehicle of George Foss
Canada 's first gasoline-powered vehicle was constructed by George Foote Foss of Sherbrooke, Quebec in 1897. It was also among the very best of the day - anywhere. Christened the "Crestmobile", it was powered by a one-cylinder, front-mounted, air-cooled engine driving the rear wheels by sprockets and chains. It was a tough vehicle (Foss drove his original for five years with few breakdowns) and gave 50 miles to the gallon of gasoline. But Foss was a mechanic and inventor much more than a "corporation man". Financial backing for the "Crestmobile" was slim and in 1902, he sold his business to American interests who continued to manufacture the car for several years at the nominal price (at the time) of $750. Foss acquired a car dealership in Montreal , selling the vehicles of others.
But Canadians were always tinkering. Above is a sort of early snowmobile conversion. In 1897, Quebec City dentist Dr. H. Casgrain converted his motor car to winter travel by replacing the front wheels with skis and the rear wheels by wooden ones studded with spikes. It was merely for his own use and amusement, not meant for commercial production.
Painting of Canada 's first service station (with claims to the world's first). An Imperial Oil establishment in Vancouver , 1908. Gasoline was pumped to a 13-gallon hot water tank and thence to the car via 10 feet of garden hose. This soon gave way to commercial pumps (right).
Revolutionary War Dirty Tricks.
Shown above in more or less actual size is an artifact from the American Revolutionary War. It is a copper plate used for the counterfeiting of a $40 Continental Currency note (the 10th issue, Philadelphia , September 26, 1778 ). This was not a private endeavour for illicit gain, but rather an attempt by the British to ruin the economy of the rebels. The fake notes were printed aboard the H.M.S. Phoenix in New York harbour in 1778 - and sold for so much paper! A contemporary advertisement in the New York Gazette in 1777 (since the practice had been going on for some time and New York was held by the British until the very end) reads: "ADVERTISEMENT: Persons going into the other Colonies, may be supplied with any Number of counterfeited Congress Notes, for the Price of the Paper per Ream. They are so nearly and exactly executed, that there is no Risque in getting them off, it being almost impossible to discover, that they are not genuine. This has been proved by Bills to a very large Amount, which have already been successfully circulated. Enquire for Q.E.D. at the Coffee-House, from 11 P.M. to 4 A.M. during the present Month."
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April 2011"The Panama-Pacific Commemoratives: Early NCLTs" "A Canadian Vehicle Commemorative" "Revolutionary War Dirty Tricks"
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