Jim Bisognani: A True Coindexter and Friend

Well, here we are in mid-June, and with the signing of the accord to end the war between the US and Iran, there is cautious yet hopeful optimism that tensions will ease in the Middle East. We can only hope. As for the numismatic world, things remain very active and competitive. Just ask those in attendance at the recently concluded Whitman Expo in Baltimore. This mainstay venue was well-attended once again and very busy on both sides of the massive bourse floor.

News does travel lightning fast these days, with the legion of various coin apps loaded on my iPhone seemingly firing non-stop notifications of upcoming events. That said, I somehow missed out on some important news to yours truly: the passing of a great coindexter and friend. Doug Schuessler, a name that perhaps is not familiar to many of my fellow coindexters, passed away February 12. I just found out about this news through an email sent by one of Doug’s good friends. Upon hearing the news, I was at a loss for words. My thoughts and prayers are with his family and his wife of more than 57 years, Shirley.

Hailing from Henderson, Kentucky, Doug was a friend who was in my thoughts virtually every day, and I would’ve been contacting him to wish him a happy birthday coming up on June 30, as I always did. He would’ve been 87 years old this year. In this modern age, I do have to thank the internet (and especially eBay), for without those innovations, I would never have crossed paths with this great man.

I met Doug through his weekly listings on eBay about 17 years ago. By always having nine eclectic lots up for bid (which ended around 8 p.m. on Sunday nights), Doug’s sales kept bringing me back each week to scan the newest offerings. Yes, it was a weekly event each Sunday night. His “signature” nine listings were tracked religiously by me and scores of others. A mixture of world and US offerings always met the eBay “hammer” between 8 and 8:30 at night.

After receiving my first few lot wins, Doug would always include a personal note of thanks and humorous asides in addition to my coins. This led to us schmoozing via email seemingly every week.

Besides, anyone whose brief eBay bio was I am a retired teacher selling some of my coins in anticipation of my heirs backing the proverbial pickup to the front door after I buy the farm. Also, wife is rather stingy with my allowance needs to be revered!

As the eBay winnings and conversations continued and Doug found out that I was a, quote, "professional numismatist," he was quite impressed. This inevitably led to discussions about our backgrounds in numismatics, earliest numismatic memories, highs and lows, interesting anecdotes, and many other conversations along the way. For Doug, his numismatic day of reckoning was when he was still in school. His journey began one fortuitous day in high school in 1955.

"I was in history class and the teacher brought in some coins from his collection and talked about them for a while," Doug said. "Boy, I was struck; I became a fervent collector right then."

His first acquisitions were found in circulation because, as he puts it, "I was so dang poor, I couldn’t afford any coins from the coin shop." Having acquired a couple of the old blue Whitman albums, he started to pull coins from circulation to fill the various slots. "You know, when I first started, you could still pull high-grade Standing Liberty Quarters and Barber coins from circulation."

My friend fondly recalled the first coin he ever bought, one he actually paid money for from a coin shop. "It was as a copper-nickel 1864 Indian Head Cent from a dealer in 1958. I cherished that coin; I think I paid 50 cents for it."

Doug then recounted a special story to me. “After I bought that coin, I started talking to the dealer; we had more in-depth conversations about coins. Anyways, a few weeks later when I was visiting the shop, it just so happened on that particular day that the local Kroger grocery store had an ad circulating around about a contest stating: ‘Bring your oldest penny into the store and you may win a sack of free groceries.’ The dealer told me that he had already taken his 1855 Large Cent to get it registered for the contest.” Then, the dealer surmised that Doug could use some extra groceries more than he, and so he pulled a coin out from his inventory and handed it to the young lad.

“Let me give you this coin, and you take it down to the Kroger store, register it, and bring it back,” said the dealer. Doug exclaimed, “He gave me a 1795 Large Cent! He allowed me to take this really valuable coin to the Kroger store to get it registered and take it back to him. I can’t imagine him trusting me with that coin, but he did. Then a week later, I got a notice from Kroger that I won that free sack of groceries, as I had the oldest penny registered!”

As mentioned in Doug’s eBay bio, my friend was a well-respected and revered teacher. “I taught English for five years at a Henderson, Kentucky high school in 1963. Then, about 1970, I moved to Ohio because I got a job at Ohio Northern University teaching speech and theater.”

Yet the desire and passion for coins changed his trajectory. “My philosophy has always been, if you’re not happy in your job, quit it and get a better job. I’ve done that several times in my lifetime and have not had any regrets.”

At the beginning of his numismatic journey, Doug was strictly a general US coin collector and didn’t branch out to world coins for almost 20 years. “I didn’t start collecting any foreign coins until I had my own coin shop in Evansville, Indiana, in 1979.” So, with metals on the move in the late '70s, Doug took the plunge and actually transitioned from teaching to coin dealer and opened his own coin shop.

It was an opportune time. It was late 1979, and it seemed that silver and gold prices were skyrocketing almost daily. According to Doug, “That was when silver hit $50 per ounce, and I remember people being lined up outside my shop door so they could sell their silver.”

It was great to have all the traffic and business. However, Doug says, “I started off with a shoestring budget. Almost every day after the shop closed, I would have to travel almost 30 miles to sell my silver to a dealer friend who would give me a little profit so that I would have cash on hand for the next business day. It was kind of an exciting time. I had always been kind of frugal and didn’t want to go into debt unless I really had to. This allowed me to build on my savings so I could still stand financially, in case I’m between jobs.”

I finally got to meet Doug in person at the ANA World’s Fair of Money in Chicago in 2011. After a hearty handshake and hug, we talked about coins, of course. A little later on during that day, Doug offered me a coin which is still one of my favorites. It is a 1933 Portuguese Guinea 20 Centavos. Not a rare coin, but still rather scarce, especially in high grades. This particular one is graded NGC MS 65 RD, and according to the NGC Census, it is tied for the finest known!

Doug knew I have a fondness for the year 1933, as new coinage worldwide was limited due to the Great Depression and otherwise faltering world economy. Here in the US, there are only two regular issued coins minted during that year (Lincoln Cent and Walking Liberty Half) and one commemorative (Oregon Trail Half Dollar) that are readily available for the average coindexters' budget.

Of course, for the well-to-do, there is the 1933 $10 Indian and the pipe dream $20 Saint-Gaudens. That is why this Portuguese Guinea 20 Centavos is exciting. It has a great design, which is simple but elegant, and the blazing orange copper is a joy to view. I treasure it even more now, and truth be told, this coin has been sitting on my desk in my office since I acquired it back in 2011.

Several years later, when Doug discovered my fondness for cartooning, he came up with an interesting offer. After I had won a small lot of foreign coins from one of his Sunday night eBay sales, Doug emailed me and asked that instead of a cash payment for my win, would I be so kind as to draw a Woody Woodpecker for him? Wow! My cartoons for coins! I gleefully complied and sent artwork to him.

Doug was so thrilled with my work that he had my little drawing mounted on the wall in his home office. So, Woody was perched to the left of his shoulder when he sat at the computer in his office chair. That little drawing was often a topic in emails from Doug, as he would invariably mention that “Woody is looking over my shoulder" or "Woody says hi.”

After Beth and I were married, in addition to any winning lots, Doug would invariably send wedding gift coins for us to enjoy. This practice went on for many months, and I think Doug enjoyed sending extra coins to us both for fun, friendship, and because he cared. Hey, and Beth has a great little collection of world coins and currency.

In closing, Doug will forever be an important part of my life, as he was a good friend with clever wit, and he cared deeply about family and friends. Thankfully, numismatics was his hobby and passion and we met through that. I think that it is quite apropos that I close with Doug’s eloquent yet humorous description of a lot he was selling on eBay many years ago:

"Up for bid are 3 Proof coins from Great Britain dated 1937 — Farthing, Half Penny, and Penny. These coins show no sign of circulation, but they have toned over the years. These coins were minted two years before my birth and have held up much better than their owner. I'm sure they'll still be around long after I am only a memory."

How true, my friend. I was one of the underbidders that night. Thanks for being a good friend, Doug. Yes, I saved all of your notes, and I am going to enjoy rereading them for years to come. Love you, Doug.

Until next time, be safe and happy collecting!

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