(1900) White Metal Medal GW-1062, P.O.S.A - Lebanon, PA

Coin Details

Auction Record

$288 MS66 05-29-2019 Stack's Bowers

Description

The Musante-Baker GW-1062 medal in white metal was issued by the Patriotic Order Sons of America camp in Lebanon, Pennsylvania. Like other P.O.S.A. medals, this piece features George Washington's portrait paired with fraternal organization symbolism, connecting the order's patriotic mission to the legacy of the first president. Lebanon, Pennsylvania, located in the Lebanon Valley of south-central Pennsylvania, was home to an active P.O.S.A. camp that participated in the fraternal order's programs promoting American patriotism and public education. The P.O.S.A. was particularly strong in Pennsylvania, where the organization had been founded in Philadelphia in 1847 and maintained its national headquarters. Local camps regularly commissioned medals and badges for distribution to members at meetings, parades, and patriotic observances. The c.1900 dating places this medal in the period of peak P.O.S.A. membership, when the organization had camps in towns and cities across Pennsylvania and the broader Mid-Atlantic region. White metal was the standard composition for P.O.S.A. camp medals, as the inexpensive alloy allowed lodges with modest budgets to provide tangible tokens of membership and patriotic commitment to their members. Each camp's medals typically included identifying text specific to that local chapter.

Rarity Notes

White metal P.O.S.A. camp medal from Lebanon, PA. Local camp medals were produced in small quantities for members. Surviving examples are uncommon outside of specialized Washingtoniana collections.

Cross References

Musante-Baker GW-1062; PCGS #657884; P.O.S.A. Lebanon, PA