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Fabled Walton 1913 Liberty Nickel Returns
to North Carolina
The
legendary Walton specimen 1913 Liberty Head nickel that survived a car wreck
and was the object of a recent worldwide search will return to North Carolina
for the first time in 45 years. The coin will be exhibited during the American
Numismatic Association’s National Money Show™ in the Charlotte
Convention Center, 501 S. College St., March 16 – 18, 2007. |
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The
three-day event will be free and open to the public.
The convention
also will feature the first formal public appearance by Walton’s heirs
since the nickel was “re-discovered” and authenticated at the ANA
World’s Fair of Money® convention in Baltimore in July 2003.
Walton’s nephew, Ryan Givens, and niece, Cheryl Myers and her
husband, Gary, will participate in a Numismatic Theatre educational program
that reunites people involved in the successful search for the
“missing” coin three years ago.
“We have been extremely
pleased and excited with the public's response to Uncle George's coin since the
day it was exhibited with the four other 1913 Liberty nickels at the 2003 ANA
Baltimore convention. The exhibit at the upcoming Charlotte convention will be
especially meaningful to us as Charlotte was one of the places he called home,
and was one of the last cities he stopped at the day he died on his way to a
coin show in Wilson, North Carolina,” said Cheryl Myers.
Other
participants in the reunion roundtable at 10 a.m. on Saturday, March 17,
include: Paul Montgomery who offered a minimum $1 million reward for the
“missing” fifth 1913 Liberty nickel; John Dannreuther and Mark
Borckardt who assisted with the initial authentication; Coin World Editor Beth
Deisher who was instrumental in locating Walton’s heirs and convincing
them to have their coin examined; and former ANA Governor Donn Pearlman who
originated and conducted the extensive publicity campaign about the search for
the coin.
Walton’s heirs kept the nickel with family papers in a
box on the floor of a Virginia closet for 41 years after Walton’s sister
was mistakenly told in 1962 that the coin was a fake. During those years the
whereabouts of the previously-known fifth specimen of the 1913 Liberty nickels
was unknown to the hobby world.
Valued today at over $3 million, the
Walton 1913 Liberty nickel will be a featured attraction at the Charlotte
convention. Other exhibits at the show include the “Billion Dollar
Display” by the Treasury Department Bureau of Engraving and Printing.
Visitors also can “pan for gold” at a hands-on display from
the John Reed Gold Mine in Stanfield, North Carolina, site of the first
documented discovery of gold in the United States in 1799.
“The
rare 1913 Liberty Head nickel belonged to respected coin collector, George O.
Walton, a part-time Charlotte resident, who was killed in a crash while driving
to a coin show in Wilson, North Carolina on March 9, 1962.
The coin,
still in its custom-made plastic holder, was recovered from that wreck,”
explained Christopher Cipoletti, ANA Executive Director.
“Through
the courtesy of the Walton family, this will be the first time this fabled coin
will be back in North Carolina in 45 years.
We’re delighted to
bring this legendary coin to Charlotte for a ‘homecoming’ so the
public will have a chance to see it in person.”
The National Money
Show™ is hosted by the Charlotte Coin Club and the North Carolina and
South Carolina Numismatic Associations. “Heritage Auction Galleries of
Dallas, Texas will conduct a major auction of coins and currency in conjunction
with the show.
The National Money Show will be held at the Charlotte
Convention Center, Hall A, 501 S. College St., Charlotte, North Carolina.
Public hours are Friday and Saturday, March 16 and 17, from 10 a.m. to 6:30
p.m., and Sunday, March 18, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
For additional
information, visit the American Numismatic Association web site, www.money.org,
or call (719) 482-9848
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Media Contact:
News
media contacts: Jay Beeton, (719) 482-9864
Donn Pearlman, (702)
868-5777
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| Publication Date: 01/04/2007 |
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