Recently, I had the pleasure of working with a client who was selling his substantial collection of silver dollars, most of which was acquired at face value! He bought them in two ways. As an employee of a major east-coast coin dealer in the late 1950s and early 1960s, he would get bags of dollars from the Treasury for this dealer and was paid a percentage of the bag as his compensation.
Additionally, once the Treasury releases stopped, the gentlemen would go around to banks and pick up silver dollars in exchange for paper currency. Tellers at these banks would even call him when folks cashed in dollars. Over two decades, he squirreled away thousands of silver dollars, including numerous better dates. The common coins, mostly in BU rolls, were sold during the Hunt Brothers run up of silver prices in early 1980. However, the better dates were retained, and this is the deal that was presented to us. Seeing such a fresh collection of many better-date dollars was phenomenal, even for a seasoned dealer in silver dollars. Opening box after box and seeing multiples of dates you’re lucky to see once or twice in most collections will forever be a career highlight.
What’s more, I found the collector to be a kind and gregarious man with great stories about the “old days” of collecting silver dollars. He is a fellow cheesesteak aficionado, and now I consider him to be a friend. My favorite part of my job is the days spent with clients going through their collections, and I find the relationships that I develop with them to be the most rewarding aspects of my job.
If you have numismatic items you would like to sell, consign to a Stack’s Bowers Galleries auction or have appraised by one of our experts, contact us today. I invite you to visit our Philadelphia Gallery at the corner of 18th and JFK Boulevard, Monday through Friday from 10 AM to 5 PM. To make an appointment call 267-609-1804 or email Philly@StacksBowers.com. Our New York City and Boston galleries are open the same hours and can be reached at NYC@StacksBowers.com and Boston@StacksBowers.com.
