(1926) Token KK-220 Gold Hiram W. Evans

Coin Details

Description

This gold token from circa 1926 is cataloged as KK-220 and depicts Hiram W. Evans, the Imperial Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan from 1922 to 1939. Evans led the second-era Klan during its peak of influence in the 1920s, when the organization claimed between two and five million members nationwide and wielded significant political power in states including Indiana, Oregon, Colorado, and Texas. The KK catalog system documents the various medals, tokens, and regalia items produced by or for the Klan and affiliated organizations during this period. Gold Klan tokens are among the rarest items in the KK series, as precious-metal strikings were reserved for high-ranking officials and significant ceremonial occasions. Evans, a Dallas dentist who seized control of the Klan from founder William J. Simmons in a 1922 internal coup, oversaw the organization's transformation from a Southern racial terrorist group into a nationwide fraternal organization that targeted Catholics, Jews, and immigrants in addition to African Americans. The 1926 date falls near the peak of second-era Klan membership, just before a series of scandals — most notably the conviction of Indiana Grand Dragon D.C. Stephenson for murder in 1925 — destroyed public confidence and sent membership plummeting. KK-220 in gold is an important artifact of this troubling chapter in American history.

Rarity Notes

KK-220 in gold is rare, produced in very small quantities for Klan leadership. Klan tokens and medals are collected as artifacts of American social and political history.

Cross References

PCGS #813263; KK-220; Hiram W. Evans, Imperial Wizard KKK 1922-1939