President Obama today presented former U.S. Senator Edward William Brooke III with the Congressional Gold Medal for his unprecedented and enduring service to the Nation. The ceremony was held in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda.

The Congressional Gold Medal, designed and struck by the United States Mint, honors Senator Brooke’s pioneering accomplishments in public service. Senator Brooke broke new ground at a time when few African-Americans held state or Federal office. He was the first African-American elected to the U.S. Senate by popular vote, serving with distinction for two terms, from January 3, 1967, to January 3, 1979. During his first term, Brooke was appointed to the President’s Commission on Civil Disorders, where his work on discrimination in housing served as the basis for the 1968 Civil Rights Act.

Brooke began his career in public service as chairman of the Boston Finance Commission, where he established an outstanding record of confronting and eliminating graft and corruption. He proposed groundbreaking legislation for consumer protection and against housing discrimination and air pollution, and made state and national history in 1962 when he was elected Attorney General of Massachusetts. He also served in the U.S. Army’s segregated 366th Infantry Regiment during World War II, attaining the rank of captain, and receiving a Bronze Star.

The medal’s obverse (heads side), designed and sculpted by United States Mint Sculptor-Engraver Don Everhart, features an image of the senator with the inscription EDWARD WILLIAM BROOKE on the right side. The medal’s reverse (tails side) depicts the U.S. Capitol Building at the top and the Massachusetts State House at the bottom between two olive branches. The center of the design showcases the inscription AMERICA’S GREATNESS LIES IN ITS WONDROUS DIVERSITY, OUR MAGNIFICENT PLURALISM HAS MADE THIS COUNTRY GREAT, OUR EVER-WIDENING DIVERSITY WILL KEEP US GREAT. Additional inscriptions on the reverse are ACT OF CONGRESS 2008 and MASSACHUSETTS STATE HOUSE. United States Mint Sculptor-Engraver Phebe Hemphill designed and sculpted the medal’s reverse.
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Stack’s Philadelphia Americana Sale was held last week in conjunction with the Whitman Coin and Collectibles Expo and was a resounding success. The auction realized nearly $9 million and set a new record for the most expensive silver U.S. medal ever sold at auction at a whopping $345,000! This sale featured not only the familiar U.S. coin and paper money issues, but also showcased landmark collections of medals, tokens, and other numismatic interests.

Part One of the Americana Sale featured American Paper Currency and was led off by the Chester L. Krause Collection of Wisconsin Obsolete Banknotes. Nearly 350 lots of Chet’s were offered and were extremely well-received. Highlights included a Oneida Bank Proof Sheet, a gorgeous color sheet that brought $23,000, and a fantastic Farmers Bank at Hudson color proof sheet that realized $17,250, more than doubling the pre-auction estimate. An excessively rare Waupun Bank “Santa Claus” Proof was also a significant highlight and sold for $16,100.

The second half of Part One was comprised of Canadian paper money, U.S. large and small size currency, fractional currency and fractional currency shields, Colonial and Continental currency, and a few pieces of Tromp l’Oeil numismatic artwork. Large size currency boasted an outstanding Gem 1896 $5 Educational note graded Superb Gem Uncirculated-67 PPQ (PCGS) that brought $23,000. National Bank Notes featured a prized D. O. Mills & Company, Sacramento, California 1872 $5 in Very Fine condition that fetched $43,125. There were three trompe l’oeil paintings offered in the Americana sale, the most notable of which was the 1949 “We’re All Gold Bugs” by Otis Kaye that sold for $43,125.

Following the numismatic art was a large section of Colonial and Continental Currency, which included a fabulous run of 1709 Colony of New York notes. First up was a rare May 31 Ten Shillings graded New-62 (PCGS) that garnered $13,225. Next was the amazing strip of three May 31 notes from the Ford-Boyd collection that went for $34,500, followed by an extremely rare November 1 Twenty Five Shillings in Extremely Fine-40 (PCGS) that sold for $12,650. Capping off this impressive run was the incredibly rare uncut pair of 25 Shillings-50 Shillings that sold for a respectable $27,600.
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