NNP

The recent sale of the Low-54a Hard Times token, the AM I NOT A MAN AND A BROTHER variant, reminds us once again that “collectors don’t buy coins, they rent them.” Of the four known pieces, at least seven auction appearances are identified since the Ford IV sale in 2004. Newman, Ford, and Partrick all owned examples (the same could be said of the Confederate half dollar), and these examples appeared on the market as these important collections were dispersed. Both the Newman and Ford pieces have traded hands at least once since their appearance in these respective sales.

Eric P. Newman traced the first appearance in print of the Low-54 and Low-54a tokens to the November 23, 1837 Emancipator, an anti-slavery newspaper. This research was presented at the ANS Coinage of the Americas Conference in 1994 and appeared in the related proceedings. Additionally, Newman presented on the topic at the 1993 ANA convention, video of which is available.

Link to “Heritage Sells Schuman Hard Times Tokens”: https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n45a26.html
Link to “The Promotion and Suppression of Hard Times Tokens”: https://archive.org/details/TheTokenAmericasOtherMoney1994COAC10
Link to Eric P. Newman video presentation on the Low-54a: https://youtu.be/muckv5P-Fds
Link to Eric P. Newman research file on Low-54a: https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/archivedetail/539684