Fairfax Coin Club – New Club in Virginia

[RWB]

In the present climate of coin collecting it is a distinct pleasure to see a new venue open for coin hobby residents of Northern Virginia.

 

The Fairfax Coin Club held its first meeting Tuesday evening at the Reston Community Center. Approximately 28 adults and YNs attended and all seemed to enjoy conversations and being part of the new group. The founding officers seem to have done their homework with both club organization and meeting running smoothly.

 

The club’s web site presents full information for potential members and guests. http://fairfaxcoinclub.com

[jgenn]

And thank you for the impromptu discussion about the availability and quality of steel in the early days of the US mint.

~jack

[RWB]

Jack,

Pleasure to meet you in person! Hope the conversation was helpful. There are details in From Mine to Mint. Also, see the publications of  Sir. William Chandler Roberts-Austen and The Royal Mint Museum on-line.

[Zebo]

Nice web-site

[RWB]

The organizing officers are doing a lot to make the club and associated material attractive to collectors and interested people.

[PS: I also enjoyed listening to the last hour and a half of the Reston Choral rehearsal of Petite Messe Solennelle. ]

[Zebo]

Roger,  you've mentioned many times that you are not a collector, but how did you become interested in coins enough to research and write about them?

[RWB]

19 hours ago, Zebo said:

Roger,  you've mentioned many times that you are not a collector, but how did you become interested in coins enough to research and write about them?

I began collecting coins when my cousin, 2 years older, was given several cigar boxes of coins his Dad had tossed aside while working at the counter in the main NYC post office during the 1930s. Most coins were Indian cents and a fair number of flying eagles, but there were  few commemorate halves and quarter eagles. I was recruited to help sort the coins, look for them in he new Red Book, and then help look through rolls of cents from the bank. I got interested because of the odd, old designs and seeing the gold coins. Kept collecting and occasionally buying a coin or two. Bought some very nice piece from Dave Bowers in the last 1960s once I was working and had a little extra money. Did a fair amount of coin photography in the early 1970s. Cut way back on buying anything when the boom started - absurd prices for ordinary coins.

Tried to get back in the 1990s but found I was not really interested in acquiring runs (re-runs?) of ordinary coins.....could not afford what I liked and did not like what I could afford. Had purchased the occasional coin book and in looking through them it seemed that there were a lot of holes in information and much repetition of things that did not make sense. The most absurd was Breen's claim that "a glavano for the high relief Peace dollar was whacked with a board by George Morgan to lower the relief and produce the 1922-35 coins." A little dinging turned up many more absurdities and created more questions. Eventually, I was told by leading numismatists that all that was knowable about the new coin designs of 1907-21 was in Taxay. Further, all the mint documents had been destroyed. That was a challenge to credibility - so I started meaningful research using techniques and contacts from Grad School and early PhD research.

The results are on a lot of bookshelves, and much more is in my files.

Hope this does not confuse.

[Zebo]

Interesting and good luck for us. The more research the better.  Thanks for sharing.

[jgenn]

Our next meeting is November 14th at the Reston Community Center.

@RWB, I'd like to talk to you about US private mint trade dollars from the late 19th - early 20th century.

 

[RWB]

jgenn - I will be at another meeting Tuesday, sorry. Send me a PM with your email and we can meet to discuss the pieces you mentioned.

[jgenn]

Our next meeting is December 12th at the Reston, VA Community Center.

[MAULEMALL]

How is the club doing. I would like to come up maybe Mid 2018 and check it out..

I Have to ask ... How is life so close to DC???

[jgenn]

9 hours ago, MAULEMALL said:

How is the club doing. I would like to come up maybe Mid 2018 and check it out..

I Have to ask ... How is life so close to DC???

We've had three meetings so far, about 20 or so in attendance with a nice range of coin collecting interests.  New folks drop in each time and are certainly welcome.  

Fairfax County is close enough to DC to have higher property taxes and traffic but not so close that it has any kind of an urban feel.  I imagine it's like many city suburbs.