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I’ll See You Around the Shows
A lot of young people like my pal Tyrone are attracted to the Wonderful World of Coins through the magic of coin shows.
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Late February through early April is going to be a great time to buy coins in Southern New England. With the dollar falling in value against the euro, silver, and gold, it’s a good time to buy quality numismatic material. When I was a kid, there were not a lot of coin shows local to my area. That has changed thanks to the growth of coin shows.
T.V. Producer michelle Tripp Photographs me as I photograph her at the Bay State Show inside my booth. Come and join us.
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In November of 1964, Ed Aleo founded Boston’s great twice-a-year coin event, the Bay State Coin Show. Back in these days, I was as green as grass even though I had been playing at collecting coins since 1949. But in 1949, I was only five years old, and the coins I collected were the ones I conned out of my father and uncles from the souvenirs they brought back from Europe, Asia, and Australia after World War II.
Bay State was the first big show I ever attended. I never thought that I would be setting up as a dealer there several decades later. Many of the great old dealers are gone now that I first met in the 1960s and 1970s. But more than a few of those guys are still around and look as if they will be around for decades to come. The funny thing is that Ed Aleo looks the same as he did 42 years ago.
Ed and Mrs. Aleo hard at work at the Bay State Show. This is his 43rd year in Boston running the oldest commercial coin show in the nation.
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I think that like Oscar Wilde’s Dorian Gray he must have a portrait of himself in the attic slowly turning into an ancient and haggard image of himself. He laughs and suggests that might indeed be the case. His Bay State Coin Show is now in its forty-second year and will be held on March 10-12 and will attract a large number of dealers from all over the country.
Once again, the Bay State Show will be held at Boston’s Radisson Hotel on Park Square at 200 Stuart Street. Show hours on Friday and Saturday will be 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. On Sunday, show hours will be 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Bogdan Charlam and Ernest Ochocinski are regulars on the show circuit. They are always at Boston where they sell great material. Their reputation as dealers of Integrity is well known.
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This show is the oldest commercial coin show in the United States. It’s a great show to find coins priced from a few cents to hundreds of thousands of dollars. You can see coins from the first ever minted in the sixth century B.C.E. up to this very day. The Bay State Show mirrors the history of the world from the days of the Persian Empire and Greek city states, through the rise and fall of world empires, and the discovery of new worlds, and the conquest of space itself.
And by the way, if you bring this copy of The Journal of Antiques and Collectibles to the Bay State Show, Ed will give you a very nice United States proof set of coins as you enter the doors of the show on any of the three days. Now that’s a good deal by any standard.
Dan Tavares shows ancient coins at Bay State.
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New England can also boast of some large and important local shows which are held almost every month. Not the least of these is Ernie Botte’s Westford Coin Show held at the large and beautiful Westford Regency Inn in (guess where) Westford, Massachusetts. Not only are there a lot of good dealers there, but his show is so easy to get to. Just get off Massachusetts’ I-495 at exit 32 then take a right onto Rt. 110 travel a short distance and there you are. The parking is great, and show hours run from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Ernie will have shows in Westford on February 26 and March 26.
Arnold Saslow M.D. is a longtime dealer with a wide selection of fine material. He has also contributed to Numismatic Scholarship through his amusing and informative writing.
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There is some very good news for many of you who have missed Tom Lacey’s shows following the closing of the Best Western Yankee Drummer Inn on Route 12 in Auburn, Mass. Tom’s last show there was held on December 11, 2005, but now I can report that Tom is back! The Second Sunday Auburn Coin Show is once again a fact of numismatic life in Massachusetts.
Beginning in March of this year the Auburn Coin Show will be held at an attractive and well appointed modern building, The Elk’s Lodge. The hall is large, carpeted, and well lighted with large brass chandeliers. The Auburn Elk’s Hall is very easy to get to. Just exit the Massachusetts’ Turnpike at exit 10 and proceed south on Rt. 12. The Elk’s Hall is located a half mile down Rt. 12 on the right just after the Hampton Inn sign. Tom will hold shows on March 12 and April 9. It’s great to have “The Auburn 2nd Sunday Coin Show” back again. It’s a great place to escape to and hang out for coin collectors on a Sunday.
Great Classic Coins can be found at Ed Aleo’s Bay State Show in Boston.
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On April 2, New England is blessed with another great coin event which happens only once a year. The highly dedicated members of The Connecticut based Mansfield Numismatic Society, under the inspired leadership of John Ferreri, the club’s Bourse Chairman, holds a great coin show. This will be the Society’s 33rd Annual show.
For a third of a century, Connecticut and Southern New England have enjoyed this coin event. The show has been held for the last half decade at the Prospect Street School Gymnasium on 233 Prospect Street at the corner of High Street in Willimantic, Conn. The show hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. A food concession will be available, and believe me, the food is good.
This Trade Dollar is typical of the great type of coins available at the shows and can be found almost nowhere else except time shops like Stack’s of New York.
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This show is well worth the drive, and like each of the four shows I have mentioned, it has its own character. The quality of the material offered is good. So between February 26 and April 9, you have nine days of coin shows to attend at four venues. And guess what? I’ll be at all of them! And I’ll be looking for you. By the way, don’t forget your copy of the March issue of the Journal of Antiques and Collectibles when you go to Ed Aleo’s Bay State Coin Show in Boston. Bring it along, show it at the door, and you will receive a nice U.S. proof set. I’ll see you around the shows.
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