1900 Silver Lesher Dollar HK-789, C.D. Cowen

Coin Details

Description

This Lesher Referendum Dollar (HK-789) documents Joseph Lesher's grassroots Free Silver experiment — he called them 'Referendum' dollars because no one was compelled to accept them; they were referred to the people for acceptance or rejection. This 1900 variety is from the first year of production. The first type, struck from dies cut by Frank Hurd of Denver, consisted of 100 octagonal pieces weighing one troy ounce (480 grains) of .950 fine silver with a face value of $1.25. The scheme attracted support from A.B. Bumstead, a Victor grocer, for whom a second, more elaborate octagonal type was produced featuring a mining scene designed by Herman Otto, a Denver artist, with approximately 700 pieces manufactured. A brief round 'Bank Type' experiment (about 10 die trials) was quickly abandoned, and in 1901 Lesher produced a smaller (32mm), lighter (412.5 grains) octagonal imprint type at $1.00 face value with approximately 800 pieces across nine merchant varieties. A.B. Bumstead, a Victor grocer, was the first merchant to support Lesher's referendum concept. The Bumstead-type pieces featured a more elaborate mining scene designed by Herman Otto, a Denver artist, with approximately 700 pieces manufactured across two sub-varieties. On November 13, 1900, in the small mining town of Victor, Colorado, Joseph Lesher (1838-1918) struck the first of his privately issued silver dollars. Born in Fremont, Ohio, on July 12, 1838, Lesher had settled in Victor in the heart of the Cripple Creek mining district, one of the richest gold-producing regions in Colorado. Frustrated by the federal government's refusal to coin silver freely after the Coinage Act of 1873, Lesher created his own silver currency, calling them 'Referendum' dollars because no one was compelled to accept them — they were referred to the people for acceptance or rejection. The Hibler-Kappen catalog, first published in 1963 by Harold E. Hibler and Charles V. Kappen as 'So-Called Dollars: An Illustrated Standard Catalog,' provides the systematic numbering system (HK numbers) used to identify and classify hundreds of American medals approximately the size of a silver dollar. The catalog has been revised and expanded in subsequent editions, with Jeff Shevlin's contributions significantly expanding the known census.

Rarity Notes

Lesher Referendum Dollars are rare across all varieties, with total mintage estimated at only a few hundred pieces per type. The C.D. Cowen variety is rare, with only a small number of known examples. These pieces are highly prized by collectors of both so-called dollars and Western Americana.

Cross References

HK-789; PCGS #643502