Oregon Trail Memorial Half Dollar - Final Issues, Termination and Aftermath

Final Issues, Termination and Aftermath

Beginning in 1934, organizations and individuals saw small-mintage commemoratives, struck at multiple mints over the course of years, as an opportunity for profit. Congress authorized several issues in 1934, including the Texas Centennial half dollar, meant to honor the centennial of Texas Independence in 1936, but struck from 1934 to 1938, after 1934 at all three mints each year. More new commemoratives followed in 1935, and over 20 in 1936. These issues included the Cincinnati Musical Center half dollar, issued to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Cincinnati as a center of music, although nothing out of the ordinary is known to have taken place in that city's musical life in 1886.

Numismatist Arlie R. Slabaugh, in his volume on US commemorative coins, discussed the marketing practices of the 1930s:

Added to the abuse of reissues was the manner of selling these and several other later issues of commemoratives. The price was often higher than the dollar per coin usually asked in the past, although most of the commemorative deluge came during the depression years. A few pieces at a higher price would not have been too bad, but on a large number of types, the cost to collectors added up. Then, too, many issues were sold only in sets. Coinage was generally small and sold out in only a few days. Speculation was rife—original cost was low to what it might be a short time later if you unfortunately missed having your order filled ... collectors who had not managed to obtain single specimens from the original source were forced to buy it at higher and higher prices from speculators—it soon became a regular round robin of higher and higher prices.

Senator Francis T. Maloney: "Is there any limitation of time on these issues?"

Lyman W. Hoffecker (legislative committee chairman, American Numismatic Association): "No, sir. They can coin them on for the next 100 years unless there is some legislation to stop it."

...

Senator Alva B. Adams: "Then, within some reasonable limits, they are permitted to get a part of their coins from one mint, and a part from another mint, and a part from the third mint; and they can get a part of them dated in 1934, and a part dated in 1935, and a part dated in 1936?"

Mr. Hoffecker: "Yes, sir."

Hearing before the Senate Committee on Banking and Currency, March 11, 1936

The Association sought more pieces in 1936; 10,000 were struck at Philadelphia and 5,000 at San Francisco, plus in each case six pieces for assay. Some of the 1936 and 1936-S pieces were sold by Scott, others by the Association through a New York City mail drop, in either case at an initial price of $1.60 per half dollar. These were dubbed the "Whitman Centennial Issue", or the "Whitman Mission" Issue. Residents of Walla Walla, Washington had sought a separate commemorative to celebrate the centennial of the arrival of missionary Marcus Whitman and his wife in the Walla Walla Valley. Although this bill was defeated, a local group made a deal with the Association to sell some of the 1936-S Oregon Trail pieces in eastern Washington for $2 and by mail for $2.18. Most of the 1936 pieces struck at Philadelphia were sold by the means of a mailing to Scott's customer list. Some portion of each of the issues between 1933 and 1937 were reserved for sale by patriotic organizations.

The 1937 issue was distributed only by the Association as the deal with Scott had been ended. A total of 12,000 pieces (plus eight for the Assay Commission) were struck at Denver, and were sold at $1.60. No special name was given to the issue. Many of the coins dated 1936 and 1937 were bought up by speculators on the first day of sale, shutting out the individual collector. Coin dealer Mehl wondered in 1937, "the 1936 Philadelphia Mint coin is now retailing at $5 and the San Francisco Mint at $10. Where will this thing stop? I don't know."

The 1938 coins, again without a special name, were struck at all three mints, the first time that had been done for the Oregon Trail coins in one year. Six thousand (plus pieces for the Assay Commission) were struck at each mint, and the issue was sold in sets of three, for $6.25. The same practice was followed in 1939, but the price was raised to $7.50 a set and the mintage reduced to 3,000 coins, plus the assay pieces. These sets were also bought up by speculators, and individual collectors often had to pay double or triple the issue price to secure a set. Collectors sent letters of protest to congressmen and to the Treasury Department. On August 5, 1939, Congress acted, passing legislation that put an end to all commemorative issues authorized before March 1939. Swiatek and Breen observed that if Congress had not intervened, "there would probably be Oregon Trail coins dated 1980".

A total of 264,419 Oregon Trail Memorial half dollars were struck, of which approximately 174 were intended for the Assay Commission, and 61,317 were melted. Accordingly, a total of 202,928 were issued to the public. The Oregon Trail Memorial half dollar was the commemorative coin struck for the longest period. According to R.S. Yeoman's 2012 edition of A Guide Book of United States Coins, the cheapest Oregon Trail coins are the 1926 and 1926-S at $135 in Almost Uncirculated. The 1939 pieces are listed only as a set and in Mint State conditions (uncirculated), beginning at $1,600.

The Oregon Trail Memorial Association was renamed the American Pioneer Trails Organization in 1940; it was still selling 1936 and 1937-D half dollars as late as 1943. When it became defunct is uncertain: Webber maintained that it ceased to function by the mid-1940s, but historian Gregory M. Franzwa wrote in a 2001 article on Meeker that the organization went out of existence about 1955. Other groups have continued its missions of Trail preservation and the building of monuments.

No commemorative coins were struck between 1939 and 1945. When authorizations resumed after the war, issues in honor of Booker T. Washington and George Washington Carver were sold, in some years, in low-mintage sets of coins from all three mints. After 1954, when the last such pieces were struck, the Treasury Department did not again support a non-circulating commemorative until 1982, when a half dollar in honor of the 250th anniversary of the birth of George Washington was issued. The Washington half dollar was distributed by the Mint, with profits applied to the reduction of the national debt. Bowers writes, "this time around would not be on behalf of private or local interests".

Bowers states that the Oregon Trail coins "are beautiful, but circumstances surrounding their issuance leave much to be desired". Slabaugh noted that "Artistically, this is my favorite commemorative coin. But from an ethical standpoint, it is not." Swiatek and Breen wrote that the Association's "activities in exploiting coin collectors and the general public eventually led to the unpopularity of commemoratives in Congress and ultimately to adamant Treasury Department opposition to any further commemorative issues, no matter how worthy the cause to be memorialized, no matter who represented the sponsoring commissions". According to Bowers, "as far as I know, the financial benefits which provided the reason for issuing the half dollars, 'to rescue the various important points along the old trail from oblivion,' to erect 'suitable monuments, memorial and otherwise,' etc., never came to pass, at least not from money provided by the sale of the coins."