"I got an Indian Head.”
“So did I.”
“Yesterday I found an Indian nickel.”
“I’ve got three.”
That was common discourse among kids in the 1960s....
As they checked their pocket change, coins from earlier eras would often turn up. Indian Head pennies circulated for 50 years from 1859 to 1909 before a new cent was struck to honor the 100th anniversary of Lincoln’s birth. The Indian or “Buffalo” nickel debuted in 1913 and lasted until 1938.As kids, we didn’t think twice about the name applied to the coins. Every coin catalog called them Indian Head pennies or Indian nickels (“Buffalo Nickel” became the widespread norm for the latter.) There was nothing derogatory about it. It’s just what they were. It should still be. After all, American Indians have long been showcased and honored on US currency.
I use the term “American Indian” because of the letters from members of tribes I’ve received. This column is nationally syndicated so people from many walks have had a chance to read and respond to it. Occasionally, a well-meaning paper has changed the term “American Indian” in my column to “Native American.” I’d then get letters from indigenous peoples stating they preferred to be called American Indians. They have contended “Native American” was applied to them by individuals who independently assumed “American Indian” was derogatory. To them, it wasn’t.
Back in the mid-1960s, another newspaper columnist named Ed Rochette was on a flight from Houston to New York. His seat mate looked curiously familiar. After chatting with him he learned the man beside him was named John Big Tree. John Big Tree was an Iroquois Indian chief who, in 1912, had posed for the portrait used on the legendary nickel.
Chief Big Tree was actually one of three American Indians used for the coin. The final portrait was a blend of the three. The others were a Cheyenne named Two Moons and a Teton Sioux named Iron Tale. Iron Tale had even been in the war party that defeated General Custer at Little Big Horn.
Many people didn’t realize who they were looking at on that nickel. Better still, the coin was a more authentic depiction than the Indian Head penny. The portrait on that penny was modeled after a Caucasian man wearing an Indian headdress.
American Indians also made prominent appearances on US gold coins including coveted $1.00; $2.50; $5.00 and $10.00 gold pieces. Collectors have long admired and paid top-dollar for them. Even certain dates of the diminutive $1.00 gold coin can now command over $100,000 in high, “mint state” condition.
Just before the turn of the century, in 1899, Chief Running Antelope of the Lakota Sioux was emblazoned on the face of an oversized $5.00 Silver Certificate banknote. In the book, “100 Greatest American Currency Notes” that note is ranked the 10th most beautiful US bill ever created. In top grade, examples of it can now sell for $4,000 or more. In lower grades the notes trade for $300 or $400.
Those in the military during the 1970s will remember a $10 Military Payment Certificate (MPC) used to pay service members serving abroad. It showcased a dramatic portrait of Chief Hollow Horn Bear in a large eagle-feather headdress. Pristine examples of those notes can bring over $700.
Equally sought-after are Indian Peace Medals created to foster good relations with tribes as explorers moved west. Along with special knives, mirrors and colored ribbons, the 1804 Lewis and Clark expedition took the medals as gifts for chiefs they met along their journey. Lewis and Clark distributed 55 medals on their journey.
The medals feature a portrait of Thomas Jefferson – sponsor of their trip, president and the “Great White Father” in Washington, DC. The reverse of the medal showed arms shaking hands along with the words, “PEACE AND FRIENDSHIP.” Today, for one of those original Jefferson Indian Peace Medals, collectors pay between $40,000 and $50,000.
Chief Big Tree of nickel fame died in 1967. It’s said the probability and activity of finding such pennies and nickels in pocket change died with him. On the up side, it’s guaranteed many of those Indian head coins in top condition are squirreled away in forgotten drawers and boxes just waiting to be found and collected or cashed in. It’s more than worth a look.
For more collecting advice, visit www.PRexford.com