For my narrative I go back quite a few years to 1958. At that time the Standard Catalogue of United States Coins, published in 17 editions by the late Waite Raymond and for the 18th edition by John J. Ford, Jr., was, in a sense, looking for a future. Ford had acquired the rights to it from the Raymond estate but did not have the time to make it what he hoped it would be — a large catalog for specialists, going far beyond previous editions of the Standard Catalogue, and, for that matter, the more popular Guide Book of United States Coins.
I was at Penn State at the time, and discussed with him his offer of my being editor. However, my own business, Empire Coin Company, was growing rapidly and I did not have time to devote to the Standard Catalogue either. Accordingly, it simply withered away. Today in 2017 back issues are available easily and inexpensively on the Internet, but there is no entity involved in any continuation.
Enter Whitman Publishing, LLC, and a brainchild that publisher Dennis Tucker had a few years ago – why not create a Deluxe Guide Book of United States Coins? This would multiply the size of the regular United States Guide Book and have much more information. With its red cover and large size, this was quickly nicknamed MEGA RED.
This became a reality in 2016 with the first edition, continuing now to the latest third edition. The softbound book comprises a whopping 1,504 pages, hundreds of illustrations, and more information than you could possible absorb in a week of nighttime reading. In addition to regular listings in expanded form, each edition has a special section. The third edition features nickel five-cent pieces, which was great fun for me to do. At one time the nickel was king in America and was the passport to seeing movies, taking carousel rides and buying soda. A large section is devoted to enjoyment of the nickel, with appropriate illustrations.
Coming up for the fourth edition will be a special essay on dimes from 1796 to the present day. Each date and mintmark will be illustrated. This brings me and Whitman to somewhat of a puzzle, as we do not have a complete set of date and mintmark images for Roosevelt dimes from 1946 to date. If any readers have Registry Sets that are already photographed and would like to make these available for use in the next edition, just let me know. In this way the fourth edition of MEGA RED will memorialize your collection. You will receive credit along with the other credit listings for those who helped.
If you plan to attend the ANA World’s Fair of Money in Denver in the first week of August, and want to “talk coins,” track me down. It would be nice to see you. You might also put on your calendar that on Wednesday afternoon from 2 to 3 p.m. at the Whitman display there will be a feature, “An Hour with Ken and Dave.” Ken Bressett, long-time editor of the Guide Book, and I will “hang out” with those who happen to be there and chat on any subjects that come up.
Another item to put on your ANA convention calendar if you are interested: on Thursday afternoon at 3 p.m. there will be a symposium or forum sponsored by the Civil War Token Society, the Token and Medal Society, and the Medal Collectors of America. A number of panelists, including me, will be on hand to field questions from the audience about tokens and medals. You are also invited to send questions in advance to the moderator, Susan Trask, whose email address is susantrask@mindspring.com. That way she can scare up some pictures of items for which questions have been asked.
There is a lot going on in the next week or two. Enjoy the time!
