Thomas Woodrow Wilson narrowly won re-election as 28th president of the United States, campaigning on the slogan, “He kept us out of war!” Within a few months, American troops would be heading for Europe after all. Mack Sennett’s Keystone Kops were making millions laugh in the nation’s movie houses, while New York’s Wally Pipp was [...]
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Telephone service began between New York and Chicago. Also in Chicago, 30-year-old soap salesman William Wrigley started selling chewing gum instead. The Coca-Cola Company was organized in Atlanta, and the first pneumatic tire was invented.
The year was 1892, and new beginnings seemed to be the order of the day. That was the case in United [...]
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Probably the most debated, revised and least understood coinage bill the United States Congress ever passed was the Mint Act of February 12, 1873. Introduced in an effort to reform and codify the U.S. coinage system, this piece of legislation would be later denounced as the “Crime of ‘73.”
Partly because of this pivotal law, 1873 [...]
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
The year after the close of the Civil War should have been a joyous, forward-looking time, but in 1866 a million young men lay dead, buried in shallow graves in places with now-familiar names such as Shiloh, Gettysburg and Antietam. The carnage had focused the nation’s attention on the most important matters in life: survival, [...]
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
The unprecedented amount of gold unearthed during the California Gold Rush sparked a boom in mining throughout the world. From 1850 through 1875, more gold was discovered than in the previous 350 years, upsetting monetary systems everywhere. Almost immediately, the flood of newly mined metal distorted the existing ratio between gold and silver prices. As [...]
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
In 1853, shipping magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt acknowledged that he was worth eleven million dollars and reported that his fortune brought him an annual return of 25 percent. Less affluent Americans found themselves in the chips, as well: Potato chips were invented at Moon’s Lake House in Saratoga Springs, New York, when chef George Crum peevishly [...]
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
The late 1830s were years of great ferment, progress, growth and change for the United States Mint. Steam-powered coinage made its debut in 1836. The first branch mint opened in New Orleans in 1838, and new designs were placed on all the gold and silver coins between 1837 and 1840. The technical and artistic advancements [...]
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Across the Atlantic, the Victorian Age was about to dawn in England. Out west, the Alamo fell to a Mexican army led by General Santa Ana. Then, less than seven weeks later, the Mexican commander himself was vanquished at the Battle of San Jacinto, leading to the establishment of the new Republic of Texas. The [...]
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Some coins are admired by collectors. Many are coveted. Only a precious few are truly beloved. Early United States coppers (large cents and half cents) fall into this special category, and so do Capped Bust/lettered edge half dollars or, as they’re widely known with warm affection, “Bust halves.”
Bust half dollars with lettered edges have undeniable [...]
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
The start of the 19th Century also marked a new beginning for the United States half dollar. After a three-year hiatus, this large silver coin returned in 1801 with a new design: the Draped Bust/ Heraldic Eagle type.
The United States Mint wasn’t yet ten years old at the time, but this was already the third [...]
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Thursday, June 4, 2009
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