EAC Convention 2015 - A Retrospective

The 2015 EAC convention was held from April 30 to May 2 in Dallas Tx. I was fortunate enough to attend, and enjoyed three full days talking to fellow copper collectors and looking at early copper. These annual events both strengthen the organization of Early American Coppers and reinforce the positive aspects of coin collecting for each member who attends.

Upon arriving at the hotel, I was informed that the folks from Stacks/Bowers were already set up in a 1st-floor conference room with coins from the Twin Leaf collection. The best way to begin was spending an hour browsing through this premier collection of middle-date and late-date U.S. cents. I was not disappointed - there are some fantastic coins in this collection.

Thurs. evening brought the EAC reception, which was well attended and had a great selection of tasty mini entrees. I re-connected with many old friends who seem to "appear" at this event each year. Following the reception, the half cent and large cent "Happenings" were conducted in a pair of nearby conference rooms. It took two hours to check out all the featured varieties, and swap some copper tales with fellow EAC'ers. One of the featured cent varieties, 1839 N12 had two nice coins that vied for 1st place in my mind. The variety that provoked the most discussion was 1852 N11, where numerous examples displayed cuds (or folded extra metal) at various different locations on the obverse rim. A number of experts contemplated the mystery posed by these aged disks of copper.

Friday was filled with a number of cuprous activities; the perusal of the bourse floor was very casual, since I did not have any particular coins on my "want list". The Heritage Auctions display of coins from the Eugene Exman Collection struck me as one of the nicest groups of early cents from old-line collectors seen since the Dan Holmes collection (sold in 2009). Lot viewing for the EAC auction (to be held Sat. night) was an important activity. I attended a few of the presentations in the educational forum - the discussion of the contents of the 1795 Massachusetts State House Cornerstone by John Kraljevich was memorable.

Saturday was mostly consumed with more camaraderie, along with a few swaps and sales of coins. At last, Saturday evening brought the long-anticipated EAC auction. For many members, this auction is the highlight of the convention. This year’s sale did not contain any “wonder coins”, but it was packed with collectible and affordable copper. In the early going, I was delighted when a low-grade 1793 Chain cent was hammered to me. This coin was destined to be a gift to an exceptional friend who briefly owned a chain back in 1989, but has been without one since then. Later in the sale, I outbid another buddy (and went over my budget) to buy a sharp 1839 N14 (Booby Head) cent. I have no regrets, as the pleasure of owning this beautiful coin has outlasted the pain of paying for it.

 And, just that fast, it was all over for another year! I brought home a few nice copper coins and added to my collection of good memories. Only 10 more months to wait for EAC 2016!