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1892-CC $5 Gold Coin of the Week - 2-20-11
13 years 10 months ago - 13 years 10 months ago #1981
by coindrummer
1892-CC $5 Liberty Gold Piece
…from the drummer collection
1892: A U.S. Presidential Election Year
One might wonder why I would begin a Coin of the Week post with the above heading. The fact is, this U.S. presidential election of 1892 would bear more weight in determining the future of the Carson mint like no other before or since.
President Benjamin Harrison (1833-1901), our nations’ 23 president was one of the best friends the Carson mint ever had. He played a vital role in the 1889 re-opening of that facility.
“Little Ben”, as he was lovingly known may have been short on stature (5’ 6”) but as his fellow republicans would say “tall enough to fill the shoes of his grandfather.” His grandfather was of course (“Old Tippecanoe”) William Henry Harrison, our nations’ 9th president.
Hot Water for Harrison
President Harrison got into political hot water over some of his tariff laws which eventually became hurtful to many U.S. businesses. He even began to lose support of his fellow Republican Party members. On top of all this woe was the long illness of his wife and soul mate Caroline whom he’d courted since their teen years. He spent much of his last year in office by her bedside until her death just weeks before re-election day. Needless to say, Harrison’s much needed campaign duties suffered. Meanwhile, New York banker “fat-cat” favorite Grover Cleveland was gaining momentum on a daily basis. To make matters even worse for Harrison, a new Populist Party candidate James Weaver was stirring up the pot and taking away much needed Republican votes.
Grover's Second Term
Cleveland did indeed secure his second term in office as U.S. president. He was and still is the only president to serve two terms but not consecutively. Regardless of whether Harrison campaigned or not, he would likely have lost his re-election. He was not the most popular of U.S. presidents. He was often short on words and seemed to lack some of the social graces much needed for a man in his position. He was often referred to as a person with an “icy” personality and as mentioned, even managed to isolate and lose the much needed support of his fellow Republican Party members. Simply put, his mishandling of these matters cost him a 2nd term in the white house. All this of course had a direct effect on the Carson City mint. With Harrison’s defeat, several years of “CC” coins were not to be.
Closure Imminent for the Carson Mint
Grover Cleveland certainly was not friendly to the Carson City mint. Upon his re-election, it was almost a certainty that he would enact the closing of the Carson mint facility…for the second time. This sadly expected second mint closure became reality. 1893 then became the final production year for the Carson mint instead of 1897 or perhaps even beyond.
Samuel C. Wright: the Carson Mint’s 6th Superintendent
Sam Wright, who was a long time friend of former Carson mint Superintendent James Crawford was appointed as the Carson mint’s superintendent in July of 1889 when Benjamin Harrison became president. He replaced Democrat Superintendent William Garrard who really never should have borne that title. A more fitting title for Mr. Garrard would have been “property custodian”. After all, the mint sat completely idle during the entirety of his tenure. Not one single coin bearing the “CC” mark was produced under Garrard’s watch.
Wright managed some respectable production figures during his tenure in 1892.
SILVER DOLLARS: Mintage: 1,352,000 (75,000 to 100,000 survivors)
GOLD HALF EAGLES: Mintage: 82,968 (700 to 850 survivors)
GOLD EAGLES: Mintage: 40,000 (800 to 1,200 survivors)
GOLD DOUBLE EAGLES: Mintage: 27,265 (975 to 1,150 survivors)
(Mintage/survivor figures courtesy of The Mint on Carson Street by Rusty Goe)
Tragedy at the Carson City Mint
On August 1st, Superintendent Samuel C. Wright was struck down with congestive heart failure. Sam was a very popular person and all of Carson City grieved at the tragic loss. Sam left this earth with an impeccable and untarnished record.
Relief is on the way……
Within days of the passing of Sam Wright, Chief Clerk Theodore Robert “Bob” Hofer was appointed the 7th Superintendent of the Carson City mint. “Bob”, as he was referred to by friends was a close friend of mint founder Abe Curry and was one of the original mint workers. He was also a friend of every Carson mint Superintendent except Garrard.
Hofer finished out the 1892 production year in fine style, then went on to post some very respectable production numbers of his own in 1893, the mint’s final year. He was the only known person to have seen the minting of the first “CC” coins struck in 1870 and the last in 1893. Hofer stayed on an entire year after the mint’s closure until he was finally replaced by former Democratic Nevada Governor Jewett W. Adams in June of 1894. Much like Garrard, Adams’ only real duty at the Carson mint facility was that of property custodian. Like Sam Wright whom he succeeded, Hofer left his post with a spotless record.
1892-CC Half Eagle
The 1892-CC half eagle has a mintage figure of 82,968 and about 700 to 850 examples are known to survive today. That’s right around a scant 1% of the total mintage and yet is considered a “common” issue by “CC” coin series standards. It’s a relatively easy coin to locate in XF to AU (about 450 to 490 survive in this grade range). It gets a little scarcer in the lower uncirculated grades and rare in MS-63 or better. Correctly graded gems would have to be considered extremely rare. There are only about 15 or so graded MS-63 or higher by the two major third-party grading companies. NGC lists one example at MS-66 as the finest known. Listed here are some typical grade/price ranges courtesy of U.S. Coin Digest:
XF- 40 - $400.00 to $500.00
AU-50 - $600.00 to $750.00
MS-60 - $1,500 and up
MS-63 - $6,000 and up
MS-65 - $33,500 and up
My “Blood-Red-Moon” 1892-CC half eagle – PCGS AU-50 (old green holder) - Variety 1-A - Die State III (late)
My example as shown in the photo at the top of this post is what I refer to as my “Blood-Red-Moon” “CC” half eagle. No…there’s nothing wrong with the color in my photo. This coin is in fact toned red and more than likely it’s the 10% copper content of this piece that gives it its blood-stained appearance. Many numismatists today might consider this an aberration or an undesirable feature. In all probability they would be technically correct. I however, find the look very desirable. I’ve quite fallen for its red toning feature and personally find it very appealing. This example, with its most unique look, somehow fits in quite well with the other 18 “CC” half eagles in my set. I would love to someday upgrade this coin/date but not trade. I plan on keeping this coin in my collection regardless. In my humble opinion, my coin is slightly under- graded by PCGS AU-50 in an old green holder. There are a few barely noticeable hairlines which possibly prevented this coin from achieving a higher grade. It’s widely known that coins such as this were in fact conservatively graded back then and it may be that this example would grade a point higher with today’s standards. As mentioned, the holder is very old and bears many surface scratch marks. When viewing the photo, those scratches should not be mistaken for coin impairments.
Variety 1-A is the only known variety for this date. There are 3 important Die States. Thanks to the variety definitions as provided by Douglas Winter (Gold Coins of the Carson City Mint – Edited by James L. Halperin)* I was able to make the determination that my example is a Die State III issue. Only one variety...yes, but at least three distinct Die States are known. My example was among the very last half eagles struck at the venerable Carson mint as evidenced by the die crack which appears on the reverse between the D and A of AMERICA (see below). These diagnostics may not quite be visible in my photo but are easy to see when examining the coin live and in person. I was unable to get decent looking close-up photos of these distictive features at this time...my apologies.
The reverse on my coin exhibits machine doubling of the mintmark as well as the E in FIVE. The only slight difference between my coin and the Die State III explanation is that the scroll under WE in the Motto is almost but not totally gone. A very slight hint of it still remains on my piece.
Many thanks to our own C4OAer John W. McCloskey for his exhaustive research on the subject of varieties and die marriages of “CC” half eagles. Now, because of John’s research I know that there is only one known reverse for each of the four 1890’s Carson mint half eagle issues – all have large “CC” mintmarks. In his Curry’s Chronicle (Fall-Winter 2010) article A Study of Carson City Half Eagles, John states “There are four different reverse dies for these years as indicated by the placement of the mintmarks on coins with these dates” – “It is possible that any of these four reverse dies was used in more than one of these years.” Opportunities exist for more research and study in this area and probable future discoveries await us.
Strike
My coin exhibits a strong clean strike with minimal surface abrasions. One of the so-called weak areas is the absence of the bottom section of the scroll under WE in the motto. Actually, it’s not really a weakness but more correctly, a diagnostic. Due to modern day research, we now know that this particular feature is synonymous to all late die state III issues of this date. If graders only had that knowledge back then, perhaps my coin would’ve achieved a higher grade. This specimen has plenty of detail remaining in the critical areas like Liberty’s hair, star radial lines and eagle feathers. I believe that my coin here is an over-all splendid example especially considering the low price paid for it in 2003. For those who happen to love toned gold coins, this one’s a real prize!
*Varieties Explained
Variety 1-A: “The date is placed high in the field and positioned a bit to the left. The mintmark is medium sized and widely spaced with the first C above the left side of the V in FIVE and the second above the left side of the E in FIVE.”
Die State I: “The mintmark is normal and the scroll under the word WE in the motto is intact.”
[color=]Die State II:[/color] “The mintmark is normal and the scroll is broken.”
Die State III (my example): “The mintmark shows noticeable machine doubling and there is doubling noted on the E in FIVE as well. The scroll under WE is totally missing due to die polishing. On the latest pieces struck, there is a die crack that develops from the D in the value to the second A in AMERICA.”
1892 HISTORICAL EVENTS
January 1: Ellis Island NY opens and begins accommodating immigration to the U.S.A.
February 12: Abraham Lincoln’s birthday declared a National Holiday in the U.S.A.
March 31: World’s first finger printing bureau is opened by the Buenos Aires Chief of Police
April 1: The Johnson County War breaks out between small farmers and large ranchers in Wyoming
May 28: John Muir organizes The Sierra Club in San Francisco
June 4: Abercrombie & Fitch is established by David T. Abercrombie - American casual clothing retailer
July 12: A hidden lake bursts from a glacier on the side of Mont Blanc flooding the valley below and killing around 200 villagers and tourists in Saint-Gervais-les-Bains (southeastern France)
August 4: The father and step-mother of Lizzie Borden are found murdered in their Fall River, MA home
September 7: James Corbett KO’s John L. Sullivan in the 21st round for the heavyweight boxing title
October 5: The Dalton Gang is shot by the townsfolk of Coffeyville KS while robbing 2 banks. Only Emmett Dalton survives with 23 wounds and spends 14 years in prison
November 8: U.S. Presidential election: Democrat Grover Cleveland defeats incumbent Republican Benjamin Harrison to win his 2nd (but not consecutive) term as U.S. President
December 18: The Nutcracker ballet with music by P. Tchaikovsky premieres at the Imperial Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg Russia
By Michael Parrott the drummer
C4OA Lifer!
1892-CC $5 Gold Coin of the Week - 2-20-11 was created by coindrummer
1892-CC $5 Liberty Gold Piece
…from the drummer collection
1892: A U.S. Presidential Election Year
One might wonder why I would begin a Coin of the Week post with the above heading. The fact is, this U.S. presidential election of 1892 would bear more weight in determining the future of the Carson mint like no other before or since.
President Benjamin Harrison (1833-1901), our nations’ 23 president was one of the best friends the Carson mint ever had. He played a vital role in the 1889 re-opening of that facility.
“Little Ben”, as he was lovingly known may have been short on stature (5’ 6”) but as his fellow republicans would say “tall enough to fill the shoes of his grandfather.” His grandfather was of course (“Old Tippecanoe”) William Henry Harrison, our nations’ 9th president.
Hot Water for Harrison
President Harrison got into political hot water over some of his tariff laws which eventually became hurtful to many U.S. businesses. He even began to lose support of his fellow Republican Party members. On top of all this woe was the long illness of his wife and soul mate Caroline whom he’d courted since their teen years. He spent much of his last year in office by her bedside until her death just weeks before re-election day. Needless to say, Harrison’s much needed campaign duties suffered. Meanwhile, New York banker “fat-cat” favorite Grover Cleveland was gaining momentum on a daily basis. To make matters even worse for Harrison, a new Populist Party candidate James Weaver was stirring up the pot and taking away much needed Republican votes.
Grover's Second Term
Cleveland did indeed secure his second term in office as U.S. president. He was and still is the only president to serve two terms but not consecutively. Regardless of whether Harrison campaigned or not, he would likely have lost his re-election. He was not the most popular of U.S. presidents. He was often short on words and seemed to lack some of the social graces much needed for a man in his position. He was often referred to as a person with an “icy” personality and as mentioned, even managed to isolate and lose the much needed support of his fellow Republican Party members. Simply put, his mishandling of these matters cost him a 2nd term in the white house. All this of course had a direct effect on the Carson City mint. With Harrison’s defeat, several years of “CC” coins were not to be.
Closure Imminent for the Carson Mint
Grover Cleveland certainly was not friendly to the Carson City mint. Upon his re-election, it was almost a certainty that he would enact the closing of the Carson mint facility…for the second time. This sadly expected second mint closure became reality. 1893 then became the final production year for the Carson mint instead of 1897 or perhaps even beyond.
Samuel C. Wright: the Carson Mint’s 6th Superintendent
Sam Wright, who was a long time friend of former Carson mint Superintendent James Crawford was appointed as the Carson mint’s superintendent in July of 1889 when Benjamin Harrison became president. He replaced Democrat Superintendent William Garrard who really never should have borne that title. A more fitting title for Mr. Garrard would have been “property custodian”. After all, the mint sat completely idle during the entirety of his tenure. Not one single coin bearing the “CC” mark was produced under Garrard’s watch.
Wright managed some respectable production figures during his tenure in 1892.
SILVER DOLLARS: Mintage: 1,352,000 (75,000 to 100,000 survivors)
GOLD HALF EAGLES: Mintage: 82,968 (700 to 850 survivors)
GOLD EAGLES: Mintage: 40,000 (800 to 1,200 survivors)
GOLD DOUBLE EAGLES: Mintage: 27,265 (975 to 1,150 survivors)
(Mintage/survivor figures courtesy of The Mint on Carson Street by Rusty Goe)
Tragedy at the Carson City Mint
On August 1st, Superintendent Samuel C. Wright was struck down with congestive heart failure. Sam was a very popular person and all of Carson City grieved at the tragic loss. Sam left this earth with an impeccable and untarnished record.
Relief is on the way……
Within days of the passing of Sam Wright, Chief Clerk Theodore Robert “Bob” Hofer was appointed the 7th Superintendent of the Carson City mint. “Bob”, as he was referred to by friends was a close friend of mint founder Abe Curry and was one of the original mint workers. He was also a friend of every Carson mint Superintendent except Garrard.
Hofer finished out the 1892 production year in fine style, then went on to post some very respectable production numbers of his own in 1893, the mint’s final year. He was the only known person to have seen the minting of the first “CC” coins struck in 1870 and the last in 1893. Hofer stayed on an entire year after the mint’s closure until he was finally replaced by former Democratic Nevada Governor Jewett W. Adams in June of 1894. Much like Garrard, Adams’ only real duty at the Carson mint facility was that of property custodian. Like Sam Wright whom he succeeded, Hofer left his post with a spotless record.
1892-CC Half Eagle
The 1892-CC half eagle has a mintage figure of 82,968 and about 700 to 850 examples are known to survive today. That’s right around a scant 1% of the total mintage and yet is considered a “common” issue by “CC” coin series standards. It’s a relatively easy coin to locate in XF to AU (about 450 to 490 survive in this grade range). It gets a little scarcer in the lower uncirculated grades and rare in MS-63 or better. Correctly graded gems would have to be considered extremely rare. There are only about 15 or so graded MS-63 or higher by the two major third-party grading companies. NGC lists one example at MS-66 as the finest known. Listed here are some typical grade/price ranges courtesy of U.S. Coin Digest:
XF- 40 - $400.00 to $500.00
AU-50 - $600.00 to $750.00
MS-60 - $1,500 and up
MS-63 - $6,000 and up
MS-65 - $33,500 and up
My “Blood-Red-Moon” 1892-CC half eagle – PCGS AU-50 (old green holder) - Variety 1-A - Die State III (late)
My example as shown in the photo at the top of this post is what I refer to as my “Blood-Red-Moon” “CC” half eagle. No…there’s nothing wrong with the color in my photo. This coin is in fact toned red and more than likely it’s the 10% copper content of this piece that gives it its blood-stained appearance. Many numismatists today might consider this an aberration or an undesirable feature. In all probability they would be technically correct. I however, find the look very desirable. I’ve quite fallen for its red toning feature and personally find it very appealing. This example, with its most unique look, somehow fits in quite well with the other 18 “CC” half eagles in my set. I would love to someday upgrade this coin/date but not trade. I plan on keeping this coin in my collection regardless. In my humble opinion, my coin is slightly under- graded by PCGS AU-50 in an old green holder. There are a few barely noticeable hairlines which possibly prevented this coin from achieving a higher grade. It’s widely known that coins such as this were in fact conservatively graded back then and it may be that this example would grade a point higher with today’s standards. As mentioned, the holder is very old and bears many surface scratch marks. When viewing the photo, those scratches should not be mistaken for coin impairments.
Variety 1-A is the only known variety for this date. There are 3 important Die States. Thanks to the variety definitions as provided by Douglas Winter (Gold Coins of the Carson City Mint – Edited by James L. Halperin)* I was able to make the determination that my example is a Die State III issue. Only one variety...yes, but at least three distinct Die States are known. My example was among the very last half eagles struck at the venerable Carson mint as evidenced by the die crack which appears on the reverse between the D and A of AMERICA (see below). These diagnostics may not quite be visible in my photo but are easy to see when examining the coin live and in person. I was unable to get decent looking close-up photos of these distictive features at this time...my apologies.
The reverse on my coin exhibits machine doubling of the mintmark as well as the E in FIVE. The only slight difference between my coin and the Die State III explanation is that the scroll under WE in the Motto is almost but not totally gone. A very slight hint of it still remains on my piece.
Many thanks to our own C4OAer John W. McCloskey for his exhaustive research on the subject of varieties and die marriages of “CC” half eagles. Now, because of John’s research I know that there is only one known reverse for each of the four 1890’s Carson mint half eagle issues – all have large “CC” mintmarks. In his Curry’s Chronicle (Fall-Winter 2010) article A Study of Carson City Half Eagles, John states “There are four different reverse dies for these years as indicated by the placement of the mintmarks on coins with these dates” – “It is possible that any of these four reverse dies was used in more than one of these years.” Opportunities exist for more research and study in this area and probable future discoveries await us.
Strike
My coin exhibits a strong clean strike with minimal surface abrasions. One of the so-called weak areas is the absence of the bottom section of the scroll under WE in the motto. Actually, it’s not really a weakness but more correctly, a diagnostic. Due to modern day research, we now know that this particular feature is synonymous to all late die state III issues of this date. If graders only had that knowledge back then, perhaps my coin would’ve achieved a higher grade. This specimen has plenty of detail remaining in the critical areas like Liberty’s hair, star radial lines and eagle feathers. I believe that my coin here is an over-all splendid example especially considering the low price paid for it in 2003. For those who happen to love toned gold coins, this one’s a real prize!
*Varieties Explained
Variety 1-A: “The date is placed high in the field and positioned a bit to the left. The mintmark is medium sized and widely spaced with the first C above the left side of the V in FIVE and the second above the left side of the E in FIVE.”
Die State I: “The mintmark is normal and the scroll under the word WE in the motto is intact.”
[color=]Die State II:[/color] “The mintmark is normal and the scroll is broken.”
Die State III (my example): “The mintmark shows noticeable machine doubling and there is doubling noted on the E in FIVE as well. The scroll under WE is totally missing due to die polishing. On the latest pieces struck, there is a die crack that develops from the D in the value to the second A in AMERICA.”
1892 HISTORICAL EVENTS
January 1: Ellis Island NY opens and begins accommodating immigration to the U.S.A.
February 12: Abraham Lincoln’s birthday declared a National Holiday in the U.S.A.
March 31: World’s first finger printing bureau is opened by the Buenos Aires Chief of Police
April 1: The Johnson County War breaks out between small farmers and large ranchers in Wyoming
May 28: John Muir organizes The Sierra Club in San Francisco
June 4: Abercrombie & Fitch is established by David T. Abercrombie - American casual clothing retailer
July 12: A hidden lake bursts from a glacier on the side of Mont Blanc flooding the valley below and killing around 200 villagers and tourists in Saint-Gervais-les-Bains (southeastern France)
August 4: The father and step-mother of Lizzie Borden are found murdered in their Fall River, MA home
September 7: James Corbett KO’s John L. Sullivan in the 21st round for the heavyweight boxing title
October 5: The Dalton Gang is shot by the townsfolk of Coffeyville KS while robbing 2 banks. Only Emmett Dalton survives with 23 wounds and spends 14 years in prison
November 8: U.S. Presidential election: Democrat Grover Cleveland defeats incumbent Republican Benjamin Harrison to win his 2nd (but not consecutive) term as U.S. President
December 18: The Nutcracker ballet with music by P. Tchaikovsky premieres at the Imperial Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg Russia
By Michael Parrott the drummer
C4OA Lifer!
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13 years 10 months ago #1982
by deepsouthspike
coindrummer.....What a an absolute Gem of a coin you have in your collection! I believe this coin of the week story easily receives the "Bob" Hofer stamp of approval!
Tom DeFina
Replied by deepsouthspike on topic Re:1892-CC $5 Gold Coin of the Week - 2-20-11
Theodore Robert "Bob" Hofer signature
coindrummer.....What a an absolute Gem of a coin you have in your collection! I believe this coin of the week story easily receives the "Bob" Hofer stamp of approval!
Tom DeFina
Please Log in to join the conversation.
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