Fugio Cent Correspondence: Lou Jordan, 2007-2008

2007·10.9 MB·English

by  Eric P. Newman

Subj: "My" new Fugio book
Date: 8/19/2007 9:53:20 P.M. Central Dayliqht Time
From:
To:
Dear Lou:
It was great talking to you today and I am most appreciative of your willingness to help me find the source of
the newspaper or magazine article republished in CNL May 1976, Vol.16, No. 2, Serial 46, p. 549. To think that
this was cut out and pasted into a book and is the only source for a ton of information is amazing. Please read it
before reading my analysis of it and comments which are currently as follows:
Fugio Patterns and the New Haven Restrikes, Genuine and Reproductions
Alleged Fugio patterns, alleged New Haven restrikes and other irregular Fugio design material appeared after
the middle of the 19th century creating substantial confusion as to what was struck from genuine dies, hubs
and parts in 1787; what was struck from genuine dies in the 19th century; and what was struck from copy
dies, hubs and parts produced in the 19th century. These strikings exist in copper,bronze, brass, silver and
gold. There has been extensive controversial comment on the subject and some of the assertions are
speculative and cannot be logically accepted or reasonably substantiated.
Horatio N. Rust was involved with virtually all of the 19th century creative Fugio activirties and his comments
seem to contain the primary facts and by inference the concealment which occurred. Rust was recognized as
an important numismatist about 1858 when August A. Sage included Rust's name and head image on one of a
series of medals of distinguished numismatic personalities which Sage had the diemaker George Lovett
prepare.
A very revealing six paragraph newspaper clipping written by Rust was apparently published in California with
the date and issuer cut away is entitled THE FIRST CENT and is subtitled "Major Rust Tells of Historic Copper
in His Possession" and is signed "H. N. Rust". This was quoted and revealed in the Colonial
Newsletter in 1976. It describes in detail the United States 1787 Fugio copper coinage and refers to the coins
"as the Ring or Franklin cent". In it Rust states that in 1860 he, being interested in old coins, went from New
York City to New Haven, Connecticut to study the New Haven coinage of the Fugios and if possible to find the
dies. After a day of frustration he met a coin collector that evening in the eastern part of New Haven and was
directed to the Broome & Platt hardware store where there was a strong box. Rust continues that he was
shown a pair of dies used as paper weights on a cashier's desk. Rust was told that they had two pairs of dies
and an odd one, the mate to the odd one having ben loaned to a man in Bridgeport who never returned it. Rust
says he purchased the dies on hand and took them to Waterbury, Connecticut where he "struck several
hundred for cabinet specimens".He continued by saying "I had one struck in gold and several in silver and for
many years used them as exchanges for collecting coins". He said that he printed on a slip an account of
finding the dies which slip he gave with each "restrike". He said that he sold the dies to a
Philadelphia coin collector. He concluded with the observation that there was a recent notice in an
eastern newspaper that a gold example which he said he had apparently struck in 1860 was found in
Philadelphia.
Rust did not name the Philadelphia coin collector who helped him find the dies nor did Rust name the
Philadelphia collector to whom he sold the dies. He did not mention that the Scoville Manufacturing
Company was the leading American token manufacturer whose factory was in Waterbury where after Rust
went after finding the dies. His language was that "he" had struck the several hundred specimens but indicated
that as to the gold and silver pieces he had them struck. He therefore virtually admitted that Scoville
Manufacturing Company struck the coins he mentioned. No printed slip describing his experience in finding the
dies and which slip was to be included with each restrike has been located. The quantities of New Haven
restrikes in existence (known as variety 104 FF correlates with his estimate of several hundred.
What he obviously avoided saying was that Scoville had prepared a pair of Fugio copy dies and that he said he
was exchanging were not from genuine dies but were carefully cut reproduction dies made at his request. That
would have hurt the appeal to others with whom he was making exchanges.
It has been pointed out that (a) the copy die Fugio mintage have thinner rings that the genuine Fugios; (b) that
the rings do not overlap each other in the same manner that all the regularly minted Fugios do;
(c) that the sun has a pointed chin instead of a rounded one; (d) that the semblance of club rays are very faint
and weak;(e) that the obverse design appears to have been copied from obverse 5; (f) that the low part of the
stem of the second 1 in 1787 appears disconnected due to obverse die damage on many examples;
(g) that there is no ornamentation between or adjacent to the letters of MIND YOUR BUSINESS; etc.
The EE reverse was obviously made by the same diemaker as the FF reverse because the ring thinness and
Subj: (no subject)
Date: 8/20/2007 9:25:54 A M. Central Daylight Time
From:
To:
Dear Lou:
I presume that no one has endeavored to look up Horatio N Rust on Google, etc. It is a very unusual name
Perhaps a New York City, San Francisco or Chicago Federal census; a city directory in those cities, or a Union
or California military service record will show where he became a Major. Could that title be
honorary? Unfortunately I am not trained to be able to do this. It would be very helpful. He was apparently a
known numismatist in New York City in 1858 for his Lovett portrait, was apparently in New York City in 1860
when he visited New Haven and wrote his newspaper article from California about 1880. Would there be a
death record so his obituary might be found? Eric
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