Around 1970, someone in the government had a curious idea that didn’t work. That’s often the case for many government initiatives. This brainstorm championed resuming large dollar coins. Not “large” like the more recently failed Susan B. Anthony and Sacagawea dollar coins. This favored issuing huge dollar coins the size of those used in the 1800s and early 1900s. They would be over 1.5-inches wide and weigh just shy of an ounce. The US Mint got the green light to produce them....
First issued in 1971, the revised dollar coins honored President Dwight Eisenhower who died in 1969. On the reverse was the image of a bald eagle landing on the moon – a tribute to the Apollo 11 moon mission.
Hundreds of millions of the copper/nickel coins were produced between 1971 and 1978. As was soon realized, the public had little use for them. Some collectors found them interesting, but not by much. More intrigue was created when the coin’s reverse was redesigned for the 1976 Bicentennial. Even with that, the public didn’t get onboard.
An unexpected savior for the coins came from, of all places, Las Vegas. Owners of casinos began using them in dollar slot machines. Lucky gamblers who won on the machines enjoyed the loud clanking of the coins in the machine’s trays. Still, at the end of the day, due to their size and weight, most all were redeemed at the casinos for more convenient paper currency.
Recently, a full-page ad in a major national newspaper promoted the sale of 15-coin specially printed rolls of those Eisenhower dollars. These aren’t necessarily “mint” or “uncirculated” coins. Far from it. The ad states they are in, “…a minimum collector grade of very good or above.” In numismatics, “Very Good” is well circulated and usually not desirable. Most collectors are not interested until coins intended for general circulation qualify for a grade of “Almost Uncirculated” or better.
The supposed allure for the Eisenhower dollars in the ad is that each of the 21 different specially-printed paper rolls of 15 coins features an icon or aspect of vintage Las Vegas from days gone by. These include images of several original casinos in the city or gambling games such as Blackjack, Craps, Roulette and Baccarat. Other rolls include other Las Vegas features such as Fremont Street, Glitter Gulch, a Wedding Chapel classic automobiles and show-girl dancers.
The price for each roll is $98. That comes to just over $6.50 per coin. For all 21 rolls the cost is $1,764. A three-roll discount is offered when all 21 rolls are purchased.
To promote sales, Mary Ellen Withrow is quoted often in the ad copy. Her claim to fame was being Ohio Treasurer and then appointed Treasurer of the United States from 1994 to 2001 by Bill Clinton.
In the ad, about the coin rolls Withrow is quoted saying things like, “It’s like hitting the jackpot on an old Vegas Slot Machine,” or “I’ll tell you this, it’s the best gift you could ever give someone,” or “My advice, get as many as you can, stash them away in a safe place to pass down from generation to generation,” and “Just imagine how much these remaining ‘Old Vegas’ rolls could be worth someday.” That’s quite the endorsement.
The thing is, according to Bob Dyer, a columnist for the Akron Beacon Journal, Withrow is listed as an “Executive Advisor” to the Lincoln Mint. That’s the same firm selling the coin rolls. She was also reportedly being paid for her endorsement of a previous silver bar sales promotion. Perhaps, this one too?
I don’t buy or sell coins so, for the Eisenhower dollars, I contacted several dealers. I asked the value of these coins. I pretty much knew the answer but wanted to hear it from them. Each said they would pay one-dollar apiece for the coins. More telling was what a longtime dealer at Scotsman Coins in St. Louis commented. He said, “When people come in with children and they behave nicely, we give the kids an Eisenhower dollar.”
So, essentially, buyers are paying top-dollar for the paper sleeve rolls. According to the dealers, they wouldn’t pay even a dime premium for those. Coin collectors just aren’t interested.
So, to answer the question in the ad as to how much the rolls could be worth someday, I think that answers itself. And, for anyone still hankering for some of the vintage Ike dollars, the best gift you could give yourself is to check with a local dealer.
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