We start off this week's JR Newsletter with some long-anticipated news. From Steve Herrman:
The JRCS has a new website with a more modern look!
As of April 28, when you bring up the jrcs.org website, you
should see the new JRCS Home page displayed with a video by JRCS President,
Brad Karoleff.
A new feature on the Home page is Latest News. This section
will cover breaking club news. Normal news and commentary should be submitted
to the JR Newsletter Editor.
The new menu item, Calendar of Events, directs you to a new
page where upcoming events of interest to the JRCS membership are displayed.
The last menu item on the main menu, Contact, directs you to
a contacts page to get assistance with membership status, submissions to the JR
Journal, submissions and sign up for the JR Newsletter, and submissions/requests
for the Website Administrator.
Where are the other menu items, you ask? Click on the icon
in the upper-left-hand corner, and you will see headings for Membership,
Publications, Resources (new), and About.
New pages under Resources include Online Resources,
Educational Presentations, Recordings of Meetings, Late Die State Showcase, and
R7 and R8 Gallery.
The new website should also work smoother and display better
on portable devices.
Thanks,
Steve Herrman
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Next, a note of thanks from Winston Zack after his request for information that was in last week's JR Newsletter:
I have received
overwhelming support on my question/request. About 5-6 people contacted
me about this, and two were able to provide images. I still do not know
the current owner/buyer, but that's ok.
One
of those who contacted me also provided me with photos of an example I
had not seen yet (different variety) making the total number of
cataloged examples among the four varieties somewhere between 14 and 16 -
exciting!
Cheers,
Winston
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Jim Matthews wrote to share his recent experiences at a variety of coin shows:
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Jim Matthews wrote to share his recent experiences at a variety of coin shows:
Jim Matthews here, reporting on the last few weeks of
activity. Thursday morning of April 20th found the blitz of coin shows
beginning. I drove into town with The
Agitator riding shotgun. No trouble at all, and were soon parked inside the
splendid Double Tree hotel. Setup was seamless. Early American Coppers was
opening in Philadelphia. I set up
with mostly silver but had just acquired a group of mint state late date half
cents. Those are mostly gone after a few days. I sold some of my more
interesting dime cuds from the 1830s to collectors who share that love. I
stumbled through a talk on broken dies on Friday that was well received.
I heard the EAC auction did quite well and was pleased with
the results of the coins I placed there. Kevin Vinton did an excellent
job along with the many volunteers whose dedication makes these shows so
enjoyable. It is always fascinating how many similarities exist between copper,
silver and gold coinage, but collecting tunnel vision often precludes
individual collectors from linking these issues. More discoveries are
constantly coming to light.
I returned home late Saturday to prepare for the Westminster
show on Sunday the 23rd.
Monday was a tad busy as I needed to wrap up cataloging for
the Goldberg's June sale, then polished up an article on the famed AMERI 1793
cents. Packed at 1 am for the Central
States show in Chicago. The 70
coins I needed to send to PCGS did not get processed that night, they would
have to wait for Chicago. I bolted
up at 5 am Tuesday, off to The Agitator's house, tossed coins,
clothes and checkbook into his vehicle and off we rolled. We slid into Pittsburgh
to fetch Jim McGuigan along for the ride and pointed west for Central States.
We arrived intact despite a few interstate challenges from an incompetent
driver who had the misfortune of looking like Homer Simpson. He sparred with The Agitator but the ditches and
guardrail remained free of wreckage. We continued on, arriving at 6 pm. Dinner in the hotel where my zombie eyes
stayed glazed over despite excited talk with close friends long unseen.
Wednesday saw setup and I completed my submissions to PCGS,
into the flow they go, when they appear nobody knows.
One of the more interesting coins is an 1832 LM-9.2 half
dime. The coin has some issues, but with so few known its bound to find a happy
home. I asked for PCGS to put the variety attribution on the insert and should
have it back in a month or so. Another group of nice Capped Bust half dimes are
awaiting grading there, some from the Herman Halpern Collection of the last
generation from that famed Stack's sale.
Central States was quite active, all the dealers I talked
with noted higher sales and firmer prices. It appears the market is picking up
quickly. A number of my best pieces found new homes and most of the coins I
bought there have already been sold.
Suddenly, it was over, and after feasting at the Weber Grill
in Schaumburg twice in two days I rolled back into the
vehicle and we swam home through torrents of rain and wind, which continued
through Indiana. My turn at the
helm arrived as we crossed into Ohio,
highlighted by a stop for gas and a Dilly Bar at the Dairy Queen. Stopping by Pittsburgh
to let off Jim McGuigan we continued to The
Agitator's house arriving after 11 pm.
6 AM and now I sit at the Clarksburg
coin show in West Virginia.
Come on down if you're in the area, we're here until 3 or so.
Next week we'll be watching to see what grades get posted
and we start it all over again. As always, you just never know what will happen!
