There is something about the Walking Liberty half dollar, called the most beautiful U.S. coin ever minted, that is unforgettable. Designed by artist Adolph A. Weinman (who also designed the highly-praised "Mercury" dime) in 1916, this coin was the "coin of the realm," until replaced in 1947 by the Franklin half dollaar. One possible reason for its demise was said to have been minting problems, i.e. "problems in its striking."
The question is: can a single coin epitomize an era, a period of history, a society, and maybe inspire thoughts of days gone by...a trip down memory lane?
For me THIS COIN CAN! It was the main coin I grew up with. Order yourself four or five of these from Littleton Coin Company. Carry them around. Clink them together in your pocket. Hold them in your hand. Don't they have a nice heft? Don't they make your day? Look at them....the solidity, the artistry, the beauty---and the memories of a past time in the history of our great country!
These are the coins folks carried during the Roaring Twenties, the Great Depression and WWII (sixteen million servicement carried them). The nice thing is that there were plenty of them; people didn't hoard them. Americans carried them and spent them. Why is it that we use only quarters today...and no halves?
These coins seemingly were plentiful, but NOT to my class of society---ten year old boys. It took some doin' to earn one and when you got one, you hesitated to spend it. It felt too good in your pocket. Two or three of them and you thought you were RICH!
We boys of that era used every bit of our energy in the summertime to find a job. We took our push mowers through the neighborhoods and mowed lawns for fifty cents each. We cleaned out chicken pens and cow pens (yes, in town!) We hoed weeds, delivered circulars, and collected pop bottles. One time they were building a new church in our end of town and we scraped the mortar off old bricks for two cents each. We got severely sunburned and wore out our dads' hatchets.
If we could bring ourselves to part with our "50 cent pieces," here are some of the necessities they would buy:
*a haircut
*a WWII model airplane kit
*a "Dave Dawson in the RAF" book
*an Xacto knife, for model airplane building
*5 Saturday double features at the Lyceum Theater
*10 big 12 oz. Pepsis
*50 cents worth of shingle nails
*1 Tom Mix Signal Ring
*2 ham salad sandwiches with cokes at Woolworth's
*12 Baby Giant Firecrackers, and 2 cents change
Let's take a look at a written description of the coin:
The Obverse: Lady Liberty walking and holding branches, United States flag over her shoulder...
The Reverse: bald eagle rising from a mountain perch..
Art historians and experts consider the Walking Liberty half dollar to be one of the most beautiful U.S. coins. Accordingly, when the official bullion coin of the United States was released in 1986, the obverse was an adaptation of Weinman's Walking Liberty. They are almost identical. The coin, pictured below, is guaranteed to contain 99.9% pure silver.
Today, from LCC, a "very fine" Walking Liberty half dollar will cost you around $48.00. It's the silver and the rarity that costs. May as well just get yourself one, and sit and handle it and remember past times in our great country....and in your life..... when you were ten, five, two, or maybe you weren't even here yet during the Walking Liberty era!
God Bless America, land that I love...stand beside her, and guide her, through the night....
.........30..........
By Mil, 4/11/12
It's amazing how much y'all could have bought with just 50 cents. Sounds like those were the days to grow up in. You can't even go to a movie without shelling out about 8 bucks nowadays!
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