1917 So-Called Dollar HK-668a, Cheyenne Semicentennial

Coin Details

Description

The 1917 Cheyenne Semicentennial so-called dollar (HK-668A) is a local commemorative piece in New York. Centennial medals served as tangible connections to a community's founding era, with designs typically featuring the city seal, important local landmarks, portraits of founding figures, or scenes from the community's early history. Struck in bronze, this piece combines durability with an attractive warm tone that deepens with age into a rich chocolate-brown patina. Bronze was the preferred composition for many commemorative medals due to its excellent detail retention. After relocations from Manhattan to Danbury, Connecticut (1972), Sioux Falls, South Dakota (1991), and Dayton, Nevada (1997), the company's archive of 50,000 items including 20,000 dies was rescued by the American Numismatic Society in 2018. New York's position as America's commercial capital and most populous state generated one of the richest traditions of commemorative medal production, with events ranging from the Erie Canal's completion to the Hudson-Fulton celebration producing significant medallic series. Harold Hibler and Charles Kappen spent decades cataloging American dollar-sized medals, creating a reference work that transformed a scattered collecting field into an organized numismatic specialty. Local commemorative medals from 1900-1930 reflect the Progressive Era's civic enthusiasm and the influence of the great exposition movement on community celebrations across the country. This piece is a variant of HK-668, distinguished by differences in composition, die state, or striking characteristics.

Rarity Notes

Local commemorative so-called dollars from the Progressive Era survive in varying quantities. Examples of HK-668A are scarce in the numismatic market.

Cross References

HK-668A; PCGS #643215