Dealer Toolkit Includes Radar Detector, Crystal Ball and Wizard's Wand

Let's have a little fun today and explore a fascinating human phenomenon:  Flock (verb):  to move or come together in large numbers. 

Seemingly without warning coin collectors flock towards a specific series of coins.  This interesting direction change often occurs suddenly, sometimes over a month or less.  It’s as if some special collector sense has become activated.

Flock (or murmuration) of birds
www.telegraph.co.uk

Let’s examine one example:

Sidestepping The Bubble

In my earliest years as a coin dealer – primarily the 1960s and 1970s – early coinage and key date pieces in the Seated and Gold series were very scarce, and when they appeared, it was an occasion to remember.

For example, I attended a show in Los Angeles sometime in the 1960s where there was a serious buzz pervading the bourse floor. 

Mixed Grill In El Paso

San Diego 1969

www.flickriver.com

Trying to figure out how to stir up a little business, I have a brainstorm:  I should make a buying trip to El Paso, Texas.   El Paso is located on a major interstate highway, intersecting east and west, north and south, so I had a hunch it might be a good place for some action. 

The Adventure Begins
I jump into my trusty 1967 Chevy and head for Texas.  My buy ad in the El Paso paper runs for three days, so I am hopeful something good shows during my stay.

It's ALWAYS Worth A Look

One day in 1984, an old gentleman walked into my Portland shop with storm clouds darkening his face.   He cuts to the chase:  he needed money, so what am I paying for junk silver dollars. 

My current buy price was $10 for coins VG and better.  He says, “fine – pay me – I have 200 junk silver dollars in this bag.”

“But wait,” I say, “we need to look at the coins. Perhaps there are coins worth more than junk price in your bag.”   The gent blusters with serious attitude; he insists the coins are junk, and wants the money RIGHT NOW!

May I Have Your Autograph???

In 1973 I’m working in a large mail order business in San Diego.  We ran full-page weekly ads in national coin publications, needing regular infusions of new material to fill orders for collectors across the country.  One of our key sources of new material was Harlan White.

Harlan White
nationalsilverdollarroundtable.org

Harlan White, owner of San Diego’s Old Coin Shop, was a dynamic and savvy dealer, an industry leader as it transitioned from a rich man’s hobby to fun for every man.   Harlan handled all series of U.S. coins and currency, specializing in Silver Dollars, $50 gold coins, Hawaiian coins and high denomination currency.  If you needed a $500 or $1000 bill, Harlan would likely have it on hand. 

Harlan sometimes seemed a bit larger than life; he really loved to tease and play jokes on family, friends and the unsuspecting public.   He had an astute eye for coins as well as varied items of interest and value to collectors.

Searching The World For Great Coins

Those who followed my inventory in recent months recognize I've been on a long and complicated search for new coins.  Success has come from usual sources (collectors, dealers, auctions) and a bit of gentle arm twisting for access to dealer stashes long hidden away.

Recent experience models the unrelenting search by dealers and collectors to discover the next batch of great coins.  Seems like the search was somewhat easier in the early days of my coin career.   Best results come both from hard work and being in the right place at the right time.  

In early 1981 we were exhausted from the great gold and silver price rise which required months and months of extra long work hours, scrambling mightily to keep body, soul and business together.  We just needed a break, so a vacation to New Zealand and Australia seemed just right.

Unexpected Harvest in the Inland Empire

I operated a coin shop in Spokane, WA from 1974 to 1978.  The shop was located right across the street from Riverside Park where a major event was held the year I arrived:  Expo ’74.  

Stamp design by
Peter Max

The Expo ‘74 World’s Fair was noteworthy in several ways. Spokane was the smallest city to ever host a World’s Fair and this was the first environmental themed fair (“Celebrating Tomorrow’s Fresh Environment”).  The IMAX theater made its debut at Expo ’74.

Spokane is primarily a farming and light industrial area, serving as a major commercial hub for inland regions, including western Montana, Idaho and northeastern Oregon.  The area is also known as the Inland Northwest or the Inland Empire.

Spokane coin clients are extremely fond of Silver Dollars, so I was right at home there.  I bought lots of Dollars in the coin shop, as well as other interesting things.

One day in 1977 a gent walks in to the shop; he’s a farmer from an area close to Spokane.  He wonders if I’m interested in Lincoln Cents.  Sure am!

A Flock of Flying Eagles

I’ve always loved U.S. Cents and today’s vignette involves America’s first small cent – the 1856 Flying Eagle.

A Betting Man

In 1972 I was working at Lyle Clark in San Diego, CA, when an elderly gent came into the store asking if I buy error coins.

When I answered in the affirmative, he brought a pouch from his pocket and laid a very unusual S-mint Barber Half Dollar on the counter.

Dealing Double Down

I do not currently handle a great deal of U.S. currency, but that was not always the case. Particularly during the 1970s and 1980s -- in San Diego, Spokane and Portland -- I dealt in paper money as well as U.S. and World coins, and related items.  

Currency is fascinating for many reasons.

Buffalo Bill Redux

A Michigan collector recently contacted us after reading the December 2012 blog post concerning Buffalo Bill Harper.  He had done coin business with Dr. Harper in the 1970s and had saved a couple of his ads from "Coin World."

Teamwork Triumphs With Rare Coin Collateral

Life is all about relationships. Strong relationships are built on a foundation of time, trust and commitment.  The successful coin business relies heavily on good relationships:  dealer and collector, dealer and dealer, dealer and local business community, and so on.

This post illustrates how temporary partnerships are built in this business to perform a task or solve a problem. 

Seated Dollar Bags Create Chaos

I’ve experienced some amazing numismatic moments during the past 50 years.  Last post described Amon Carter Jr. casually dumping an old leather bag of $50 gold slugs into a showcase.  Here’s another numismatic vignette . . . .

One day in the late 1960s I decided to make a trip to the San Bernadino Coin show.  I didn’t have a table, but needed to buy inventory, and I’d always had pretty good luck at this venue.

As I enter the show, I encounter a dealer table completely surrounded by humanity, many people deep.  The buzz was loud.  I dove into the crowd to see what was going on.

A Humble Unassuming Giant

Some of the greatest experiences involve meeting interesting people, and I have had the honor to meet some true numismatic heavyweights.

This story takes place in the late 1960s or early 1970s, at the Texas State Numismatic Show (TNA) in Dallas, Texas.  I’m setting up my table, and as I work I’m conversing with Tom McAfee, who is sitting across the table from me. 

Tom was one of my mentors, and I learned a lot from him.  Tom was a dealer in Honolulu for many years, later moving to Winter Park, FL.  He was an expert in Hawaiian and U.S. Type coinage, among other things.

As we chat, out of the corner of my eye I notice someone arrive at the next table.  I do not know this gent; at first glance looks as though he has just come from the farm.  His show setup attire was particularly rustic.

Shrewd Collector; Smart Purchase

The last post described Bob B.’s exquisite set of Buffalo Nickels.  Here we explore one of America’s most esoteric and difficult sets of coins.

Our friend Bob was a pretty quiet guy, a bit cagey even, for you never knew what he was thinking . . . or what he would bring in to show and discuss.

In the late 1980s, the coin market was moving up in price.  Bob was paying attention. About 1988 he came to my office, saying, “It’s time to sell some coins” unveiling a spectacular and complete set of 3c Silver coins.

Rare 1872 issue
www.ha.com

This was, without a doubt, the finest set of 3c Silvers I had ever seen, perhaps the finest set in existence at the time.  The set was stored in a Wayte Raymond album and displayed perfect peripheral target tone.

A Businessman and His Buffalos

Let’s stay with the theme of Buffalo Nickels for the moment . . . .

One of the greatest individuals I’ve had the opportunity to work with was Bob B. 

I met Bob in my Portland coin shop in the early 1980s.  He was a true gentleman, extremely pleasant to do business with.  Bob had a sharply honed mind and we enjoyed many deep conversations about economics, business and the coin market.  He loved coins!

Bob was born in Oakland, California, in the 1920s.  His father was an engineer for Standard Oil of California.  Bob and his brother both had paper routes and began developing their business acumen when they were 8 to 10 years old.

Buffalo Bill Rides Again

In 1973 I was working in a large mail order business in San Diego.  One day I had a call from Continental Coin in Van Nuys, describing a big collection of Buffalo Nickels they had just acquired and thought we could use.  Was I interested?  Of course I was!  Our inventory was always short of Buffalos.

A Big One That Got Away!

In September 1994 I received a call from a long time customer and friend with an interesting numismatic opportunity.  This fellow was a well connected business owner in the Spokane area; his coin interest and expertise were common knowledge.

A local bank contacted him for advice dealing with a special coin collection and he referred them to me.  I flew to Spokane to take a look.

What I found was one of the more interesting collections I've had the opportunity to examine during my career -- approximately 50 pieces of Bust Gold before 1840.  Highlights included:

1796 Stars $2.50 Gold
Heritage Auction #1173

1796 Stars - $2.5

1808 - $2.5

Also 1807, 1829, 1830 and 1831 - $2.5

1795 - $5

Several nice $5s between 1800 and 1812, a few in the 1820s, including 1823, 1826 and 1830

1795 - $10

1838 - $10

Also 1798, 1799, 1803 - $10

1893-CC Morgan Bag: Two Thumbs Down

Steve Markoff
Photo www.procon.org

One day in 1965 I headed to Los Angeles from San Diego to deal with a few business matters.  I needed to buy some gold for the shop and wanted to visit a couple of dealers.  One of my stops was to see Steve Markoff¹ who worked out of a small downtown office at the time.

When I arrived at Steve’s office, he was in the middle of working with another coin dealer and silver dollars were spread out on the table in front of them.  They were discussing an entire bag of 1893-CC Morgan Dollars.  Perhaps this bag of dollars was acquired as part of the U.S. government dispersal program.²

Steve asked me to take a look at the bag and give him my thoughts.  In so doing, I learned a great deal about 93-CCs.

Enjoyin' the Drama at Coin-A-Rama

The coin business underwent significant transformation during the 1960s.   Coin collecting had primarily been an activity for the rich and famous, supported by a small number of numismatic professionals.

In the 1960s coin collecting began to attract regular folks, interest fueled in part by the U.S. discarding the gold standard and a limited period when coins or currency could be redeemed for silver.

The new hobby demographic was served by lots of new coin shops, coin shows, new methods of communication, and soon a major market developed.  I was excited to be part of the wave of change.