Front Cover

V.F. Seattle. Expositions. Century 21. Municipal Reference Library
Branch of Seattle Public Library
508A County-City Building
Seattle 4, Wash.
$1,000,000 Silver Dollar
Display . . . SEATTLE WORLD'S FAIR 1962
Are You a numismatist and don't know
it? Your presence here shows definite
tendencies. But fear not, there are thousands like you. Coins have fascinated Man
through the ages.
Numismatics is the science of coins,
medals, and tokens.
The term "coin-collector" hardly does
justice to the scientific and historical
knowledge required of a true numismatist.
Have You the slightest notion of what
is involved in handling one million silver
dollars? At the Philadelphia mint, counting by machine, it took one man eighteen
days. Their total weight is approximately
60,000 lbs., or 30 tons, depending on the
wear of the coins. The interest for the six
months it is tied up on exhibit at the Fair
is breath-taking. Thirty thousand dollars!
This is high finance, and it required
numerous government and banking leaders, as well as many private business
concerns to make this educational exhibit
possible.
The Silver Dollar is
part of Americana.
An interesting, behind-
the-scenes look at this
unique exhibit.
What a far cry from the days when
silver dollars (or "cartwheels" as they
were called because of their size) changed
hands almost too easily. At the point of
a roadside bandit's pistol, or over the
whisky-stained gaming table of Lost Creek
Saloon. "Cartwheels" paved the way West.
They were there when the Irish immigrants sliced across the prairies laying
railroad tracks. Silver dollars were the
monthly reward for stringing humming
telegraph wires over towering mountains.
And, not too oddly, they spelled nightly
fun in the silver and gold mining towns
of Nevada and Colorado.