LCG&HS members and guests learn about the historic value of coins

 

[April 04, 2023] 

At the Logan County Genealogical and Historical Society meeting March 20th, Dean Baker spoke about the Railsplitter Coin Club and showed a coin collection with many old coins.

The Railsplitter Coin Club began about 55 years ago in Lincoln. Baker said Charlie Dutes and five other men who were interested in coins were visiting and decided they needed a coin club. The initial meetings were held in a paint store located where the Blue Dog Inn is. The store had a big ball of string in the window.

Fifty years ago, Baker joined the Railsplitter Coin Club. He said it is one of the best coin clubs, having gone from six charter members in the beginning to 55 members now. Every June, the club holds a coin show.

Baker was a teacher and school administrator who loved history. He said coins can teach us history. “In God We Trust” can be found on a two-cent piece from 1864.



Though “In God We Trust” can now be found on most bills, those words were not always used on paper currency. Baker showed a one dollar note from 1935 that left out the words “In God We Trust.” It was an error by the U.S. Mint, and Baker said it caused an uproar. The bill was called the “Godless bill.” Several million of these bills were made and circulated and Baker has some of them.

A blanket bill Baker showed from 1923 does not have “In God We Trust” on it because it was not used on paper currency at that point.



The coin collection Baker showed had several coins previously used in the United States. These included a large cent, half cent, two cent piece, non-silver three cent piece, silver three cent piece, half dime and a twenty-cent piece. Like the Sacajawea and Susan B. Anthony coins and Eisenhower dollar, the twenty-cent piece did not go over well.

Another coin in the collection was a trade dollar used in the United States and China. When the dollar was sent to China in a trade deal, it would be chalk marked to show it was authentic. Eight chalk marks would show it went to China eight times.

Other coins included the Morgan dollar, peace dollar, and some silver dollars. Baker said a 1921 peace dollar is now worth $125 because so few were made.

Currently, Baker said silver is going for $22 an ounce. He said some buy silver for security because they are unsure of what is going to happen to the economy.

In spring 1979, the Railsplitter Coin Club increased from 35 to 60 people at a meeting. Baker said the reason was obvious [to club members]. The Hunt Brothers of Texas were trying to corner the silver market, purchasing large amounts of silver. When the price of silver dropped, the brothers stood to lose a lot of money.

Around that time, Baker recalls a teen who had dropped out of school. Over the years, the young man bought quite a bit of silver and sold one valuable piece to a store for $16,000. This young man became a wealthy man through luck and intelligence.

On the flip side of the “coin,” there was another man who Baker said bought all the silver he could at $22-$23 an ounce after borrowing money to buy it. The price increased to $25 an ounce, but then the market dropped. This man had invested thousands of dollars, then had worthless silver. Baker said the man took his own life.

In 1964, Baker said minting silver coins stopped because the cost of silver was becoming more expensive than the coins were worth. If you melt down a silver dime now, you have two dollars’ worth of silver.

One member asked about how much silver had been worth.

In response, Baker said that depended on whether it was the local or worldwide market. Before the silver market fell, there was a place in Bloomington where Baker said the owners were buying hundreds of thousands in silver and gold every day. People were lining up to sell their silver rings, silver jewelry and silver pendants for $25 to $26 and ounce. Baker said worldwide, silver was worth close to $50 an ounce before the market crashed.



The history of coins is one of the reasons Baker likes coin collections. In 1943 during World War II, pennies were made of steel because copper was needed for ammunition for the war. Baker showed how it could be picked up with a magnet.

A silver nickel was made during the war years because steel was needed for the war effort. Baker said the cost for the government to mint coins is much more than they are worth, especially when it comes to pennies and nickels.



Proof sets, which Baker said go through a special process, are nice birthday gifts. These sets have proof coins of each denomination minted during a specific year.

One Railsplitter Coin Club member makes commemorative calendars that show bills like the colonial coin, buffalo bill and a $100,000 bill that had Woodrow Wilson’s image on it. The biggest currency we have now is a $100 bill. Other calendars have some history of the wars and coins from those wars.

Three things Baker said make coins valuable are the mint, mintage and condition. How many were made and the mint they were made at is important. For example, Baker said a coin with CC on the back is worth around $100.

Baker then shared some advice about coins. He said selling coins at an auction is not the best idea because with the fees you have to pay, you lose about 30 percent. When going to a coin shop, you need to realize they may not give you much. If selling to a private person, you should also be careful in case they are not honest with you.

If you get a coin of any value, Baker said you should not clean it. You should also beware of fake coins, which weigh the same as authentic coins. Baker said some people go to the trouble of making fake coins and then selling them.

Something else Baker said you should be aware of is people who claim to know everything about coins.

One time, Baker got more money than he expected for a Morgan dollar because the Eagle had extra tailfeathers. Baker had never noticed this error in all the years he had the coin.

One question for Baker was whether he buys gold and silver.

Though Baker has bought and sold coins for 50 years, he does not buy gold because it is so expensive. With silver, the prices often fluctuate.

There is so much to know about coins. Baker said the more you know, the more you don’t know.

The next Logan County Genealogical and Historical Society meeting will be held April 17 at 6:30 p.m. in the LCGHS building.

[Angela Reiners]