Owner Comments:
The Twenty Cent piece was a 19th century mistake. In an effort to get the Federal Government to buy more silver, western mining interests sponsored the legislation for the “double dime” in the guise of consumer protection. The argument was that a person who purchased an item for a dime could not always get the right change when they paid for it with quarter because there were few cents and nickels circulating in the western states. A Twenty Cent piece or “double dime” would relieve this problem. Of course it would have made more sense to expand cent and nickel production to the western mints, but logic had nothing to do with the argument; special interest politics were the overriding factor.
The double dime started causing trouble from the moment it appeared in circulation. Despite the fact that the piece had a smooth, not a reeded edge, and a different eagle on the reverse, it was confused with the quarter. Many people lost money because of this, and the coin quickly become unpopular. Clearing either the Twenty Cent piece or quarter had to go, and the double dime made a quick exit after only two years of business strike production. Proof coins would be made in 1877 and ’78, but after that the Twenty Cent piece was history.
The 1878 Proof Twenty Cent Piece that is pictured above was a “dream coin” for me when I was a young collector. Back in the 1960s, when I was in junior high and high school, I was fascinated by the Twenty Cent Piece. I was able to collect the four coins that were made as business strikes, but I could only dream of the 1877 and 1878 coins because they were very high priced Proof-only issues.
This coin is a very high end PR-64 example with no hairlines visible to the naked eye. It is covered with original blue-gold toning which is indicative of an original surface 19th century silver coin.