1826 So-Called Dollar HK-1001, Erie Canal

Coin Details

Auction Record

$60,000 XF45 03-25-2020 Stack's Bowers

Description

This 1826 Erie Canal commemorative (HK-1001) is a piece cataloged in the monetary section of the Hibler-Kappen so-called dollar reference. The Erie Canal, completed on October 26, 1825, was the transformative 363-mile waterway connecting the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean across New York State. Governor DeWitt Clinton celebrated with the 'Wedding of the Waters' ceremony, pouring a keg of Lake Erie water into New York Harbor. The canal reduced shipping costs by over 90 percent, transformed New York City into America's dominant commercial port, and opened the continental interior to settlement and trade. So-called dollars acquired their name because they are not true dollar coins but rather privately issued medals that approximate the size and weight of U.S. silver dollars. The collecting specialty emerged in the early 20th century and was formalized by the Hibler-Kappen catalog, which organized hundreds of diverse pieces — from exposition medals to political tokens to private monetary experiments — into a coherent collecting framework.

Rarity Notes

This 1826 so-called dollar is generally scarce in the numismatic market. Examples are collected by specialists in so-called dollars and American medallic art.

Cross References

HK-1001; PCGS #643757