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New York has a great numismatic history. Founded by the Dutch in the 1620s, New Amsterdam, as New York was first known, became a great commercial center. Large Dutch thalers circulated in this rich colony as did gold ducats. In 1664, the British took over New Amsterdam as a result of a war that found the Netherlands pitted against the English. James Stuart, Duke of York and younger brother of King Charles II of England, was given this colony that became his namesake. Now English pounds, crowns, shillings, and pennies joined the Dutch and German thalers and the ubiquitous Spanish pieces-of-eight then in circulation. New York grew during the colonial period as a cosmopolitan center for shipping, trade, printing, banking, some manufacturing, and even theater. The British occupied it during most of the American Revolution. It was a Tory town, to a certain degree as a matter of convenience, but after the evacuation of the British, it was found to be quite a patriotic center. For a time it was the capital of the United States. As a matter of fact, Washington was first sworn in as president in 1789 at New York’s City hall. A lot of pirate loot made its way into New York. Captain William Kidd, of pirate fame, entered into any unholy alliance with the royal governor of New York, the Earl of Bellomont. The governor gave Kidd his support as a privateer, allowing him to command a private vessel as a ship of war. Privateers were only commissioned to capture ships of nations with which their country was at war. Captain Kidd went way beyond this to capture ships of nations with which England was at peace. Much of his ill gotten loot ended up in New York and in the pockets of his friend, the royal governor.
In the end, Bellomont suffered a loss of face and Captain Kidd was hanged in London – three times to be exact. On the first occasion, the rope snapped. The second time the rope broke as well. The captain was a large man for his time, and there was a quirk in English law that said that if the rope breaks three times, the condemned man is set free. This was not the case with Captain Kidd on a fatal day in 1701. The third hanging was with a new rope, and the job was nicely done. New York would not know this swaggering pirate again. But his gold and silver, no doubt, was still in circulation there. His gold doubloons would be matched 86 years hence with those of a native New Yorker, Ephraim Brasher. One of the most romantic coins produced in New York was the famed Brasher doubloon. This is a coin I can only dream of owning. It has been featured in books and films involving robbery and murder. It’s value today is approaching $1 million dollars at the very least.
In 1979, an example of the coin from the famed Garrett sale fetched $725,000 at auction. In 1981 another example from the same collection brought $625,000. Two decades later these same coins may fetch millions. Don’t expect to find one in change. It seems that jeweler Ephraim Brasher lived not too far from George Washington by 1789 in New York. For years before it was believed that Brasher forged the so-called Lima (Peru)-style gold doubloon. He then designed an attractive coin featuring the Arms of New York on the obverse and an eagle on the reverse. Brasher placed his touchmark, featuring his initial “B,” on the eagle. This was to attest to the purity of the gold and the fact it was of correct weight. Too often people had been cheated by receiving a coin of lighter weight. Clipping bits of metal off silver and gold coins was widely practiced. These slivers of gold and silver could add up to a tidy sum in time. Quite a bit of copper coinage was minted in old New York. Copper pennies featuring Washington, the Arms of New York, Standing Indians (A.K.A. First Americans), Eagles, and even George III were minted. Many New York copper coins were minted in England and then brought to the new United States. Among these was the famed “Nova Eborac” coins of New York. A head with a laurel wreath was on the obverse and a seated figure, looking a great deal like “Butannia,” was featured on the reverse. Copper coins minted for Talbot, Allum and Lee were minted in England with “New York” and without “New York” appearing on them. They featured a standing female figure with what appears to be a bale of trade goods on the obverse and a full rigged ship on the reverse. Some Talbot, Allum and Lee tokens have lettered edges reading “Cambridge Bedford and Huntingdon X.X.” New York was to see the circulation of world coins for many decades to come. A stock market was developed at the corner of Wall and Broad streets, and the rest is history. Tom Rinaldo, specialist in colonial coins, and owner of Yesteryear Coins of Phonecia, N.Y., has issued a wonderful copper storecard that should become a great collectible. The obverse looks like an “Excelsior” copper of New York, and the reverse is his business card. Someday I expect to see these listed as the “Rinoldo Excelsior Storecards of 2000.” New York has a rich heritage of paper money. Colonial banknotes, broken banknotes, and banknotes for a lot of foreign countries have been printed in New York. The American Bank Note Co., Hamilton Bank Note Co., and New York Bank Note Co. printed money, stamps, and other official paper.
New York today is not only one of the greatest banking centers in the world, but the center of the coin business. The heritage of numismatics in New York is a national heritage that reaches back almost 380 years. For those of you who want to catch up with me in the New Year, I’ll be at Richard Murphy’s N.E.S.S. Coin and Stamps Show on January 5, 2003 at the Holiday Inn in Dedham, Mass. This show is held on the first Sunday of each month. The Holiday Inn is located at Routes 1 and 128 (Exit 15A) in Dedham. Show hours are 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. I have enjoyed meeting so many of you Journal readers each month. It was great seeing so many of you for the first time at the Bay State Show in Boston in November. Have a great and joyful New Year, and keep building those collections.
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M.A.
degrees in History and is the author of several books. He has also written
more than 1,500 articles and monographs in The Numismatist, Linn’s Stamp
News, The Regional Recorder, and other publications.
