Gypsy Heart
Gold Member
Gazett - Colorado Springs
Mystery of the Lesher dollars
November 21, 2008 - 10:26 PM
BILL VOGRIN
THE GAZETTE
It's no secret that Victor and Cripple Creek
produced millions in gold from mines dug on
the back side of Pikes Peak.
Starting with Bob Womack's discovery in Poverty
Gulch in 1890, the Cripple Creek district
exploded into a world-famous mining camp. Even
today, mining goes on in Victor - using a
cyanide drip to extract gold. But some say there
is another fortune to be had. Silver.
Not buried raw metal awaiting prospectors with
picks and shovels.
Silver, as in hundreds of coins minted in
1900-01, distributed mostly in Victor and said
by some to be missing ever since. Coins, known
as Lesher dollars, which could be worth hundreds
of thousands to the lucky person who discovers
the stash. And it may be as easy to find as
looking in an old coffee can or shoe box.
Treasure hunter W.C. Jameson wrote about the
stash in his book, "Colorado Treasure Tales."
Parts of Jameson's theory are easily proved.
Other parts, well, it depends on who you
believe. Here's what is known.
Pioneer miner Joseph Lesher, a native of Ohio,
came to Colorado after the Civil War and mined
around Georgetown, Leadville and in the San
Juan Mountains, according to histories written
by coin experts Farran Zerbe and Adna Wilde.
Eventually, Lesher owned a silver mine near
Central City, but he saw his business suffer
when the federal government demonetized silver
in 1873 and caused a crisis in the silver industry.
Lesher followed the rush to Cripple Creek after
Womack's discovery of gold in 1890, and he amassed
wealth by investing in real estate.
Lesher remained an advocate of silver and,
though its value had crashed, he decided to
try to spark interest in it by launching
production in 1900 of his own silver coins,
which became known as Lesher dollars.
Lesher called his coins "referendum souvenir"
medals and gave them eight sides to distinguish
them from round U.S. currency. Since legal
coins were scarce in the mountain West, merchants
were glad to have any sort of valuable token
customers could trade. So several in Victor
agreed to accept them as money.
But Lesher dollars were not legal, and his
initial 100 coins caught the attention of federal
authorities, who deemed them counterfeit and
confiscated his dies.
Lesher redesigned his tokens after consulting
with the U.S. Attorney's office to avoid further
legal trouble. On the new version, he stamped
the name of A.B. Bumstead, a Victor grocer who
agreed to redeem them for merchandise.
In the next months, Lesher produced five types
of "dollars" in 12 varieties with the names of
grocers, jewelers and liquor stores in Victor,
Cripple Creek, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Salida,
Denver and Grand Junction, and even a merchant
in Holdrege, Neb. He also produced one unique
coin that he submitted for a trademark.
Lesher told Zerbe in 1914, in an interview at
his Victor home, that his Denver mint produced
3,500 of the octagonal pieces, each made of an
ounce of pure silver.
To encourage merchants to buy them and accept
them in lieu of U.S. currency, Lesher backed
his $1 tokens by offering to redeem them for
$1.25. Adding the names of businesses was a
way to convince people of their value.
But Lesher told Zerbe he lost interest in his
silver scheme and quit production in 1901.
A century later, experts such as Wilde could
account for only about 1,800 of the silver
coins. Before he died on Nov. 16, Wilde said
his decades of research and collecting of
Lesher dollars led him to believe Lesher
exaggerated when he claimed he produced
3,500 coins.
"I can't confirm anywhere near that," Wilde
said, noting that fewer than 500 have been
found.
But Jameson, the fortune hunter, says he
believes Lesher was telling the truth.
In fact, he believes hundreds of Lesher
dollars, each worth anywhere from $1,300
to $50,000, are out there, waiting to be
found.
In his book, which describes lost treasures
throughout the Rockies, Jameson says Lesher's
silver coins were hoarded by Victor
businessman Zach Hutton.
"Hutton did not quite understand the purpose
and the intended temporary nature of the coins,"
Jameson wrote in his book. "Hutton believed
the Lesher dollars were actually produced by
the United States government and he perceived
them as real money."
Jameson said Hutton kept the coins in two
large coffee cans. "By the end of 1901, Hutton
completely filled the cans with the dollars,"
Jameson wrote. "Concerned someone might want
to steal his collection of Lesher dollars,
estimated to be several hundred by now, Hutton
hid them someplace on his property."In
January 1902, Hutton died of pneumonia.
Jameson and his looters ransacked Hutton's
business and home in Victor in search of the
stash. They pulled up floorboards and ripped
open the walls hunting for the coins.
They were never found.
In an interview from his Texas home, Jameson
said he came upon journal notes and a diary
that described Hutton and his stash of
Lesher dollars.
"I lived in Woodland Park about six years, and
I spent time around Victor working on that
story," he said. "I chased down some things,
looking for historical connections,
interviewing people. I was in possession of that
story a good long time before I wrote it."
Wilde said he'd never heard of Hutton or the
stash in the coffee cans as Jameson described.
Another coin expert with his own impressive
collection of Lesher dollars said it's possible
there are hidden coins awaiting discovery.
"There definitely is a discrepancy between the
number Lesher said he made and the number that
have been verified," said Chris Marchase,
president of Colorado Tokens Co. of Denver.
Marchase is the grandson of former Colorado
Springs mayor William "Bill" Henderson, who
also founded Pikes Peak National Bank and was
a key player in bringing the Air Force Academy
and the American Numismatic Association
headquarters to the Springs.
After the ANA moved here, Henderson became
interested in coins and amassed perhaps the
most complete collection of Lesher dollars
anywhere. He had 20 of the 21 varieties,
including the one-of-a-kind trademark coin
that Marchase said is worth perhaps $50,000.
Marchase inherited his love of coins - and
the Lesher collection - from his grandfather
and has researched the topic. He took his
closely guarded collection and visited Wilde
in a Springs hospital just days before Wilde's
death to talk about the coins and their history.
"Experts like Farran Zerbe and Adna believe
there were only 1,800," Marchase said. "But
I don't dismiss the possibility there are
more. It's feasible."
One reason Marchase said he believes there
are more floating around is because a new
type of Lesher dollar was discovered in
1998.
"It was in a shoe box," Marchase said.
"There was a $10 silver dollar in the box
and a Lesher piece worth $15,000." Marchase
said most experts say they believe the
missing Lesher dollars were melted down for
their silver or were never stamped to
begin with.
But Marchase said some experts say they
believe Lesher dollars might be discovered
in places outside Victor. He notes a 1903
advertisement that encouraged people to
use the "famous Victor referendum silver
dollars" and listed five "exclusive agents"
who would exchange them for merchandise
or cash.
The list included agents C.W. Thomas of
Florence, D.W. Klein of Pueblo, Boyd Park
of Denver, J.W. Slusher of Cripple Creek
and Sam Cohen of Victor.
"Who knows what is out there?" Marchase
said. "Personally, I believe there is a
hoard in Florence. There is evidence that
Lesher sent 100 to C.W. Thomas in Florence.
They are probably scattered all around the
state and in Nebraska, where Lesher
had supporters."
As for Jameson's story about Hutton and
his coffee can stash of hundreds of coins,
Marchase is skeptical. "Theoretically, it
could be out there," Marchase said.
"Collectors are always waiting for them to
be found. But when they are, it's usually
in groups of 10 to 15. Not hundreds. It's
possible, but not likely. Who knows?
-
contact the writer: 636-0193
Mystery of the Lesher dollars
November 21, 2008 - 10:26 PM
BILL VOGRIN
THE GAZETTE
It's no secret that Victor and Cripple Creek
produced millions in gold from mines dug on
the back side of Pikes Peak.
Starting with Bob Womack's discovery in Poverty
Gulch in 1890, the Cripple Creek district
exploded into a world-famous mining camp. Even
today, mining goes on in Victor - using a
cyanide drip to extract gold. But some say there
is another fortune to be had. Silver.
Not buried raw metal awaiting prospectors with
picks and shovels.
Silver, as in hundreds of coins minted in
1900-01, distributed mostly in Victor and said
by some to be missing ever since. Coins, known
as Lesher dollars, which could be worth hundreds
of thousands to the lucky person who discovers
the stash. And it may be as easy to find as
looking in an old coffee can or shoe box.
Treasure hunter W.C. Jameson wrote about the
stash in his book, "Colorado Treasure Tales."
Parts of Jameson's theory are easily proved.
Other parts, well, it depends on who you
believe. Here's what is known.
Pioneer miner Joseph Lesher, a native of Ohio,
came to Colorado after the Civil War and mined
around Georgetown, Leadville and in the San
Juan Mountains, according to histories written
by coin experts Farran Zerbe and Adna Wilde.
Eventually, Lesher owned a silver mine near
Central City, but he saw his business suffer
when the federal government demonetized silver
in 1873 and caused a crisis in the silver industry.
Lesher followed the rush to Cripple Creek after
Womack's discovery of gold in 1890, and he amassed
wealth by investing in real estate.
Lesher remained an advocate of silver and,
though its value had crashed, he decided to
try to spark interest in it by launching
production in 1900 of his own silver coins,
which became known as Lesher dollars.
Lesher called his coins "referendum souvenir"
medals and gave them eight sides to distinguish
them from round U.S. currency. Since legal
coins were scarce in the mountain West, merchants
were glad to have any sort of valuable token
customers could trade. So several in Victor
agreed to accept them as money.
But Lesher dollars were not legal, and his
initial 100 coins caught the attention of federal
authorities, who deemed them counterfeit and
confiscated his dies.
Lesher redesigned his tokens after consulting
with the U.S. Attorney's office to avoid further
legal trouble. On the new version, he stamped
the name of A.B. Bumstead, a Victor grocer who
agreed to redeem them for merchandise.
In the next months, Lesher produced five types
of "dollars" in 12 varieties with the names of
grocers, jewelers and liquor stores in Victor,
Cripple Creek, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Salida,
Denver and Grand Junction, and even a merchant
in Holdrege, Neb. He also produced one unique
coin that he submitted for a trademark.
Lesher told Zerbe in 1914, in an interview at
his Victor home, that his Denver mint produced
3,500 of the octagonal pieces, each made of an
ounce of pure silver.
To encourage merchants to buy them and accept
them in lieu of U.S. currency, Lesher backed
his $1 tokens by offering to redeem them for
$1.25. Adding the names of businesses was a
way to convince people of their value.
But Lesher told Zerbe he lost interest in his
silver scheme and quit production in 1901.
A century later, experts such as Wilde could
account for only about 1,800 of the silver
coins. Before he died on Nov. 16, Wilde said
his decades of research and collecting of
Lesher dollars led him to believe Lesher
exaggerated when he claimed he produced
3,500 coins.
"I can't confirm anywhere near that," Wilde
said, noting that fewer than 500 have been
found.
But Jameson, the fortune hunter, says he
believes Lesher was telling the truth.
In fact, he believes hundreds of Lesher
dollars, each worth anywhere from $1,300
to $50,000, are out there, waiting to be
found.
In his book, which describes lost treasures
throughout the Rockies, Jameson says Lesher's
silver coins were hoarded by Victor
businessman Zach Hutton.
"Hutton did not quite understand the purpose
and the intended temporary nature of the coins,"
Jameson wrote in his book. "Hutton believed
the Lesher dollars were actually produced by
the United States government and he perceived
them as real money."
Jameson said Hutton kept the coins in two
large coffee cans. "By the end of 1901, Hutton
completely filled the cans with the dollars,"
Jameson wrote. "Concerned someone might want
to steal his collection of Lesher dollars,
estimated to be several hundred by now, Hutton
hid them someplace on his property."In
January 1902, Hutton died of pneumonia.
Jameson and his looters ransacked Hutton's
business and home in Victor in search of the
stash. They pulled up floorboards and ripped
open the walls hunting for the coins.
They were never found.
In an interview from his Texas home, Jameson
said he came upon journal notes and a diary
that described Hutton and his stash of
Lesher dollars.
"I lived in Woodland Park about six years, and
I spent time around Victor working on that
story," he said. "I chased down some things,
looking for historical connections,
interviewing people. I was in possession of that
story a good long time before I wrote it."
Wilde said he'd never heard of Hutton or the
stash in the coffee cans as Jameson described.
Another coin expert with his own impressive
collection of Lesher dollars said it's possible
there are hidden coins awaiting discovery.
"There definitely is a discrepancy between the
number Lesher said he made and the number that
have been verified," said Chris Marchase,
president of Colorado Tokens Co. of Denver.
Marchase is the grandson of former Colorado
Springs mayor William "Bill" Henderson, who
also founded Pikes Peak National Bank and was
a key player in bringing the Air Force Academy
and the American Numismatic Association
headquarters to the Springs.
After the ANA moved here, Henderson became
interested in coins and amassed perhaps the
most complete collection of Lesher dollars
anywhere. He had 20 of the 21 varieties,
including the one-of-a-kind trademark coin
that Marchase said is worth perhaps $50,000.
Marchase inherited his love of coins - and
the Lesher collection - from his grandfather
and has researched the topic. He took his
closely guarded collection and visited Wilde
in a Springs hospital just days before Wilde's
death to talk about the coins and their history.
"Experts like Farran Zerbe and Adna believe
there were only 1,800," Marchase said. "But
I don't dismiss the possibility there are
more. It's feasible."
One reason Marchase said he believes there
are more floating around is because a new
type of Lesher dollar was discovered in
1998.
"It was in a shoe box," Marchase said.
"There was a $10 silver dollar in the box
and a Lesher piece worth $15,000." Marchase
said most experts say they believe the
missing Lesher dollars were melted down for
their silver or were never stamped to
begin with.
But Marchase said some experts say they
believe Lesher dollars might be discovered
in places outside Victor. He notes a 1903
advertisement that encouraged people to
use the "famous Victor referendum silver
dollars" and listed five "exclusive agents"
who would exchange them for merchandise
or cash.
The list included agents C.W. Thomas of
Florence, D.W. Klein of Pueblo, Boyd Park
of Denver, J.W. Slusher of Cripple Creek
and Sam Cohen of Victor.
"Who knows what is out there?" Marchase
said. "Personally, I believe there is a
hoard in Florence. There is evidence that
Lesher sent 100 to C.W. Thomas in Florence.
They are probably scattered all around the
state and in Nebraska, where Lesher
had supporters."
As for Jameson's story about Hutton and
his coffee can stash of hundreds of coins,
Marchase is skeptical. "Theoretically, it
could be out there," Marchase said.
"Collectors are always waiting for them to
be found. But when they are, it's usually
in groups of 10 to 15. Not hundreds. It's
possible, but not likely. Who knows?
-
contact the writer: 636-0193
