1876-CC twenty cent historic rarity

A most special coin just sold in Baltimore at the Bowers and Merena auction of June 11 - 12. The coin; an 1876-CC twenty cent piece. Other than the fact that there are only 12 to 20 known examples of this rare date, the fascinating thing about this particular piece is the most intriguing family history/story that accompanies it.
First of all, this rarity is graded PCGS AU-58 which actually makes it even more of a rarity so to speak as currently no known examples of this historic date are graded uncirculated! That's right, this is the only known 1876-CC twenty center known in circulated condition. The coin had previously been graded AU-58 by ANACS in the 1990's. Here's the brief 'five-generation' story on this important coin. 1: John Seagraves Pick originally from New York/become resident of Virginia City Nevada, obtained the coin from general circulation. More than likely 'on a whim' he decided to keep it perhaps in celebration of the 1876 date and our nation's centennial celebrations. John fathered a son. 2: John William Pick was born in 1872 in Virginia City and obtained the coin from his father John Seagraves Pick. He eventually moved to Berkeley California and became a doctor. He fathered 2 sons (who both passed away young) and a daughter. 3: Virginia Pick Jurgensen was born in 1904 and inherited the coin from her father, John William Pick. She survived the San Francisco earthquake of 1906 at age 2 and held the coin through two world wars and many long years until her death in 1993. 4: Her son, Wilfred Pick Jurgensen was born in Berkeley (1934) inherited the coin and held it until his death. 5: The coin then passed to his widow and son, Jean Lorraine and Stephen Frederick Jurgensen. The coin's amazing journey through time takes up to June of 2009 where some lucky soul bought this most amazing specimen for $207,000 in Baltimore Maryland USA. This coin is already known as one of the classic U.S. numismatic rarities, so to obtain a specimen with a most complete, five-generation pedigree such as this is simply mind blowing. No...this isn't one of the 'prettiest' specimens from this short and rare series, but it certainly has to be one of the most intriguing and fascinating.

Curry’s Chronicle Page Launched on New C4OA Website

As you might have noticed, there has been a lot of construction occurring on the new C4OA website (http://www.carsoncitycoinclub.com/). We’ve been adding new threads to the Discussion Board, publishing new posts in the News and Articles section, and steadily working behind the scenes to create a user-friendly, attractive, and versatile website where all “CC”-enthusiasts can thrive. As of today, June 9, 2009, we have added a new “wing” to this website, and we believe that this is one of the most special additions yet.

If you glimpse at the new website's left navigation menu, you'll see we've added a new item called “Curry’s Chronicle.” On this page you will find thumbnail images of the front covers of each award-winning Chronicle, which link to their respective table of contents. Within each table of contents, there are selected articles, complete with images and tables, just as you’d see them in the copies of the quarterly.

In the past, many of our members have wondered if there was an online edition of Curry’s Chronicle. At the time, we didn’t have the proper platform to be able to produce such a feat. Now, with the help of the new C4OA website, we are able to give readers a taste of what each Chronicle has to offer.

We hope those interested in our publication will join the club and receive Curry’s Chronicle. But, for now, we hope that you enjoy this peek into our club publication’s history.

For those of you who do not have older editions of Curry’s Chronicle, back issues are available at $6 each (including postage). All issues are available except for summer 2005 and winter 2006, which are out of print. Simply make your check payable to CCCCOA, and mail it to our treasurer in Idaho at this address:

Treasurer/CCCCOA

P.O. Box 16776

Boise, ID 83715-6776

Don’t hesitate to leave your comments about this new “wing” of the website in our “Curry’s Chronicle” thread on the new website's Discussion Board. We certainly love knowing how much our hard work is appreciated by those who warrant it most—our beloved C4OA members!

Regional Meeting at the Carson City Coin Show in August

If you’ve had your nose buried in the most recent edition of Curry’s Chronicle, you should already know that this August is going to be a very eventful month for C4OA. Only two weeks after we have our annual meeting in Los Angeles on August 6th at the 2009 ANA World’s Fair of Money, we’ll also be having a 2009 C4OA Carson City Regional Meeting at the Carson City coin show, hosted by the Nevada State Museum.

After a year of renovations, the Nevada State Museum will once again be hosting its Carson City coin show on August 21-22, 2009. During the coin show, the C4OA will host a regional meeting in an upstairs room at the museum. This will be a time of sharing, of questions and answers, and of showing our coins and telling about them. The meeting will be on Friday, August 21st from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. All members will then meet for dinner at 5:15 at Adele’s Restaurant, one of the finest eateries in Northern Nevada, located just up the street from the old mint building. (Please note: Due to the limited space available for our dinner at Adele’s, we’re restricting guests to C4OA members only.)

If you wish to add your name to the list of participants, please send a note to Maya Roberts at 5032 S. Virginia St., Reno, NV 89502, or call her at (775) 322-4455. Email: mariesgate@sbcglobal.net. This will be a memorable event for all who join in.

New C4OA Website Launched!

Dear C4OAers,

I'm pleased to announce that after many hours of preparation, we have launched a new C4OA website. The URL is www.carsoncitycoinclub.com. We have new features, including a discussion board, a "contact us" page, and a news and articles section.

Rusty Goe, C4OA president and editor of Curry's Chronicle, made this all happen. This site was not designed to take the place of the blogsite, but instead to offer an additional meeting place for Carson City enthusiasts in cyberspace. If you're interested in how this website came to be, please read the May 21st News and Articles entry on the site.

Visit the site, www.carsoncitycoinclub.com, and register on the discussion board. Leave your comments to the posts, or create your own post! Please note, the site is live, but it is still being tweaked to fit our expectations. Any little glitches will be fixed soon.

Enjoy your new site and forum, fellow "CC"-lovers!

-Maya

Souvenirs from the Nevada State Museum in Carson City

Last year we were in Reno and I was able to visit Nevada State Museum and the mint in Carsin City.

The day we were there the press was not operating, however they were selling medals produced on the old press #1. Prices were very reasonable.

1875-CC Twenty-Cent Pieces

Well, here it goes my first attempt at posting on this blog. To get to this point it took a while.

Finally, I was able to upgrade from 1875-CC G Details to 1875-CC MS64. As one can see, on the reverse the left wing has a problem, but overall the coin is nice. This leaves some room for a future update - one with a perfect wing.

Since this is my first try I am not sure if the images are too small or too big.

Questions Regarding Receiving Invitations to this Blogsite

In the spirit of “blogging for dummies,” I would like to explain the dynamics of participating on this blogsite. First, let me go over the basic definitions of some blogsite lingo:

Blog: Literally, “blog” is a shortened form of “weblog,” which is a series of online postings by one or more authors. Blogs usually have a feature that allows viewers to comment on the topics discussed.

Right now, the Web site you are on is a blog, or blogsite.

Post: A post is what one or more authors (C4OA members, in this case) contribute to a blogsite. This is the actual mini-article you write and publish within the blogsite.

Right now, the text you are reading is in the form of a post, which I just published on the blogsite.

Comment: A comment is an afterthought, or an addition to a post. Comments can be published by anyone, even if the person isn’t a registered author on the blogsite.

Basically, you comment on a post, and you post on a blogsite.

Recently, I have received some questions about problems that members have encountered with accessing this blogsite, so I will explain how you can participate on this blogsite:

First:
Become a Member of the Carson City Coin Collectors of America.

Second:
Sign up for Google account. You will need to have a Google Account in order for your Invitation Link to work. The C4OA blogsite is on Google’s “Blogger” platform, so only Google Accounts will work with it.

Third:
Request an Invitation Link from a Club Administrator at mdparrott@cox.net, ok2lmkr@aol.com, or mariesgate@sbcglobal.net. (If you don’t receive an invitation after emailing one of these addresses, please try another one. Remember, these are the email addresses of volunteers within the club, and they might not always check their email or they might be on vacation.)

This invitation will come from Google’s “Blogger,” so be aware that it will NOT come as a reply from the volunteer you originally emailed! And it will not come from the C4OA.

Fourth:
Add a Post! All you need to do is click the “Sign In” button at the top, use your Google Account information and password to sign in, and you will be brought to your “Blogger Dashboard.” In the Dashboard, you can view whatever blogs you are apart of, and if you click “New Post,” it will allow you to post a mini-article to our blogsite. When it’s posted, other members will be able to comment on your writing.

Hopefully, this clears up some of the issues members have encountered recently, such as not being able to post articles onto the blogsite.

If you’ve struggled through all the steps required to register on the blogsite, and you’re having issues when attempting to post something, please remember that you can email your questions and concerns to mariesgate@sbcglobal.net. (Make sure you set your spam filters in your email account to allow this address to reply to you!)

Concerning Curry’s Chronicle
We’re in the midst of proofing the summer 2009 Curry’s Chronicle, and it looks like it will be shipped right on schedule! You can expect to receive your copy around the first week of June.

Enjoy these spring months while they last!

-Maya

Update on the Summer 2009 Curry's Chronicle

Fellow C4OAers,

All of the article and letter to the editor submissions are in for the summer 2009 Curry’s Chronicle! We’re now in crunch-time, where we edit, arrange, and layout the journal before we send it off to the printer. We’ll be working hard for the next two weeks, so you can enjoy this upcoming Chronicle just as much as the last issue!

Hope you’re having a wonderful first-day-of-May,

-Maya

This Blogsite's Potential Strives Against its Failure to Elicit Member Participation

For almost two years, the Carson City Coin Collectors of America has provided this blogsite to its members and to any other cyberspace visitor who might pass by. Over 440 people have signed up for membership in the club since its inception in May 2005, and approximately 300 of them have maintained their dues-paid status. All current members receive four times a year, an issue of the club's award-winning journal, Curry's Chronicle. This blogsite is an added bonus of their membership. Yet, whereas members await with eager anticipation each new issue of Curry's Chronicle, very few of them take advantage of this blogsite. We want to know why.

The success of this blogsite, just as the success of Curry's Chronicle, depends on contributions of content by club members. Fortunately, the articles and letters to the editor continue to pour in for Curry's Chronicle. This enabled us to publish our blockbuster spring 2009 edition, which featured 16 articles. In contrast, only a handful of members---maybe 10---faithfully visit this blogsite, and if several of these members' contributions were eliminated, there would be nothing for other visitors to view. This isn't the way it's supposed to be.

This blogsite is a community domain, where community efforts are required to produce a sense of community pride. Our vision for this blogsite is to have a forum where Carson City coin enthusiasts can meet to exchange information about their passion. We want it to also serve as a reference source for Internet surfers with questions about the Carson City Mint and its coins.

Our original expectation for this blogsite was built on the if-you-build-it-he-(or they)-will-come principle. We believed that a blogsite devoted to preserving the legacy of the Carson City Mint would not only attract our club's members, but would also attract anyone who had even a remote interest in the subject. We wanted the site to resemble a wiki, as in Wikipedia.

If all had gone according to plan, this site would now have hundreds of small postings from our members that covered dozens of different topics related to "CC" coins and the history of the Carson City Mint. In addition, there would be hundreds of comments posted by members and non-members, in reference to the mini-articles, the images of coins, and the questions raised.

If the site had experienced this kind activity, we would have reciprocated by posting dozens of other articles, excerpts from books, a gallery featuring information on each of the 111 different date/denomination combinations in the "CC" coin series, and much, much more.

Visitors to this site could find information on many of the varieties found within each series of "CC" coins, price estimates for every "CC" coin in every grade range, population data for surviving "CC" coins, facts and stories about GSA and Redfield "CC" silver dollars, updates on "CC" coins in the auction place, and images of hundreds of "CC" coins. There would be everything that's found in each issue of Curry's Chronicle and a whole lot more. And the best part would be, that new bits of information and exciting new things would be added to the site every day; plus, visitors would be able to ask questions all the time and people would be able to comment on anything they saw on the site.

I know the faithful few that visit this site on a regular basis are asking themselves, "What are we waiting for?" What I'm hoping is, if you're not one of the "faithful few," and you're just a casual visitor---or even a first-time visitor---to this blogsite, you'll send a comment to express your interest in helping us achieve our goal of transforming it into a popular destination spot for Carson City coin collectors. If you know of another Internet site that's already offering what I've outlined in this article, please let me know about it and I'll post a link to it.

One word about our club

The Carson City Coin Collectors of America is a club that every serious "CC" coin enthusiast should join---you won't find more information on this fascinating subject anywhere. If you collect Carson City coins and you're not a member, you're like a baseball fan without access to ESPN or the sports pages in the newspaper. You're like a food lover without any good restaurants to enjoy. Do yourself a favor and before you add another "CC" coin to your collection, join the Carson City Coin Collectors of America---stop being a fish out of water.

You can send your first year's dues of $20 to:

TREASURER
P.O. Box 16776
Boise, ID 83715-6776
Make checks payable to CCCCOA

Please be sure to include your name, your mailing address, and your email address.