By Wesley Millett and Gerald White, authors of book “The Rebel and the Rose“.

In April 1865, the Civil War ended for most Americans. The war, and its various aspects, continues to capture the interest and imagination of many Americans who are fascinated by the battles, leaders, and strategy displayed during that conflict. Mysteries endure, too, including the ultimate disposition of the Confederate treasury.

Much of the mystery was engendered by Union officials, who greatly inflated the value of the Confederacy’s treasury to several million dollars. This was probably done to increase the incentive to Union soldiers combing the villages and roads of the Carolinas and Georgia for the treasury, and for Confederate President Jefferson Davis, who had fled Richmond. The actual value of the treasury was probably not much more than $500,000.

The trek south of the Confederate government has been well documented in a number of first hand accounts written several years after the war. The authors were primarily participants in the evacuation of Richmond and they included Confederate cabinet officials, army officers, and treasury employees. Many of the accounts were published in the papers of the Southern Historical Society, in an effort to dispel rumors that Davis took the money for himself and his family. One treasury clerk ? in particular, Micajah Clark ? provided a detailed accounting of the disposition of the funds.

An aspect of the treasure that Clark omitted concerned the fate of 39 kegs of Mexican silver dollars. These were coins that the Confederacy received through the sale of cotton to Mexico. The Mexican coins had been transported to Danville, Virginia, and when the Davis party was forced to move further south, primarily by wagon, the more than 9,000 pounds of silver would have considerably slowed down the procession. For this reason, the coins were almost certainly buried in Danville, and evidence suggests, they remain there today. Read Full Article Here

by Greg Reynolds for CoinLink

On May 26 and 27, Superior Galleries of Beverly Hills will auction a variety of numismatic items, mostly U.S. coins, plus some patterns, many British and other European coins, tokens and medals, and paper money. The topic here is the ‘Roadrunner’ collection of 133 items, the vast majority of which are U.S. coins.

A significant percentage of the Roadrunner collection consists of coins from the shipwreck of the S.S. Republic, including a startling sixteen Liberty Seated Half Dollars. An extensive run of Liberty Head Double Eagles ($20 coins) is newsworthy. The collector known as ‘Roadrunner’ has gold coins of all denominations dating from the middle of the 19th century. Most of his gold coins were produced at Branch Mints, though he has several Philadelphia Mint gold coins.

The most valuable coin in the Roadrunner collection is an 1879 Flowing Hair Stella ($4 gold coin). It is NGC certified ‘Proof-67 Cameo.’ He purchased it privately from Superior Galleries.

Overall, this collection is particularly strong in the series of Liberty Head Eagles ($10 gold coins). Eagles dated 1860-S are extremely rare, and Roadrunner has one of the highest graded ones, an NGC certified MS-61 1860-S from the S.S. Republic. It is one of only two that the NGC has graded above MS-60; the other, which is graded MS-61 is also from the S.S. Republic. The PCGS has not graded any of these above AU-55. It seems likely that fewer than fifty 1860-S Eagles are known.

The 1858-S Eagle is very rare. There are certainly less than 135 pieces known. Roadrunner’s 1858-S, NGC graded AU-55, may be one of the best. Jeff Garrett & Ron Guth write that the 1858-S “is nearly as rare as the more highly regarded 1858 Eagle, but unlike the 1858, no Mint State examples of the 1858-S are known” (Encyclopedia of U.S. Gold Coins, 2006, p. 337). (more…)

Numismatic Conservation Services (NCS) has been selected to conserve the coins recovered from the SS New York shipwreck. The coins comprise a diverse cross section of coins in circulation at the first part of the 19th Century, including an important group of exceptional quality southern mint gold coins. Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC) has been chosen to certify the coins following their conservation.

The SS New York operated a light cargo and passenger service between New Orleans and Galveston including military and post office contract passage until it foundered during a hurricane on September 7, 1846. Seventeen of the 53 crew and passengers were lost, along with “thirty to forty thousand dollars in gold, silver, and bank notes,” according to contemporary reports. The ship was first discovered in 1990 by an amateur diver and Louisiana oilfield worker who relied on reports of snags from local shrimp fisherman to pinpoint the wreck. After completion of archeological survey conducted by the Minerals Management Service, and gaining legal title to the wreck, the original discoverers returned to recover the ship’s coins in 2006.

While primarily “treasure seekers,” they were also concerned about the historic value and preservation of the artifacts they salvaged. “We chose NCS to handle the post-recovery process because of their unique capabilities and expertise in working with shipwreck coins. Their process maintains the historical pedigree that was important to us and also renders the most beautiful artifacts,” comments Craig DeRouen of the recovery operation. NCS also conserved all coins recovered from the historic shipwreck SS Republic.

“Together NCS and NGC offer the only professional services to conserve shipwreck coins and then certify them, preserving the integrity and history of these coins. The coins from the SS New York demonstrate this with their wonderful quality and rich diversity, both markers of their considerable importance,” relates NGC Chairman Mark Salzberg, who oversaw the certification of the coins from the SS New York.

Read Full NGC Article Here

By ALAN SAYRE

A steamship that sank off the Louisiana coast during an 1846 storm has produced a trove of rare gold coins, including some produced at two, mostly forgotten U.S. mints in the South, coin experts say.

Last year, four Louisiana residents salvaged hundreds of gold coins and thousands of silver coins from the wreckage of the SS New York in about 60 feet of water in the Gulf of Mexico, said David Bowers, co-chairman of Stack’s Rare Coins in New York.

“Some of these are in uncirculated or mint condition,” Bowers said, predicting the best could bring $50,000 to $100,000 each at auction.

Of particular interest to coin experts — numismatists — are gold pieces known as quarter eagles and half eagles, which carried face values of $2.50 and $5, respectively, in the days before the United States printed paper currency.

Those coins were struck at mints in New Orleans; Charlotte, N.C.; and Dahlonega, Ga. The Charlotte and Dahlonega mints operated from 1838, when the first significant U.S. gold deposits were found in those areas, until the start of the Civil War in 1861, said Douglas Mudd, curator of the American Numismatic Association’s Money Museum in Denver. Neither mint ever reopened.

The Dahlonega Mint produced 1.38 million gold coins, while 1.2 million were minted in Charlotte. Tens of millions of gold coins were minted in the United States before the federal government confiscated those held by individuals, banks and the U.S. Treasury in 1933 and melted them into gold bars as the country abandoned the gold standard.

Read Full Article Here

Editors Note: NGC has also posted an article entitled  “NCS Conserves Coins Recovered from the Steamship New York” with more details as to the type of coins found on the SS NewYork and the NSC conservation and NGC encapsulation.

By JOHN GROBLER - freelance journalist

The Namibian Government has taken over responsibility for the excavation of the 500-year old shipwreck found at Oranjemund last month after the Office of the President was approached in this regard by the Portuguese government, The Namibian has established.

Namdeb spokesman Hilifa Mbako confirmed that three Ministers - Errki Nghimtina of Mines and Energy, Dr Abraham Iyambo of Fisheries and Marine Resources and Willem Konjore of the Ministry of Youth, National Service, Sport and Culture - flew to Oranjemund on Thursday to inspect the site.

He declined to give any further information, referring all queries to the Office of the President instead.

This office could not be reached for comment over the weekend.

Another well-placed source indicated that the Portuguese government had contacted President Hifikepunye Pohamba’s office directly, which had led to him sending the ministerial delegation to Oranjemund.

“The Ministers have returned from their visit in Oranjemund with an order that nothing further should be said by anyone on the shipwreck until further notice,” the source said. Government has made it clear that it has now taken full charge of the matter, the source added.

In a written statement released to the media on Friday, Nghimtina confirmed the three Ministers’ visit to the site of the discovery. Nghimtina thanked Namdeb “for all the phenomenal work they have done in protecting the site where the wreck was found and providing security for the artefacts”.

He added that “appropriate officials” from relevant Government departments, being archaeologists, the National Heritage Council and the National Museum of Namibia, “now need space and time to carry out vital analytical work to provide answers to the many questions that we have”.

Because Government also needs to study all the information available at this stage to make an informed decision about the way forward, “there will be no further information or media comments on this matter - until further notice”, Nghimtina stated. (more…)