I really enjoyed the article about the Manhattan Beach Centennial medal. I grew up near there, and my father owned a pharmacy on Manhattan Beach Boulevard. I spent many carefree hours of my youth fishing off that pier. My sister still lives there, and I forwarded the ordering information to her. I don't know how you do it, but there's always at least one article that grabs me every week. Keep up the great work!

Toivo Johnson was a Finnish-American dealer of Holden, Maine. His first career flourished during the 1936 U.S. commemorative coin boom and he remained a major player in the commemorative field for decades. I exhibited his Coin Designer medals at a recent meeting of the New York Numismatic Club, where Kathy Bullowa spoke glowingly of Toivo and his early role in U.S. coins. His medals faded quickly from public perception.

I believe Herman Steinberg is familiarly known as Hi Steinberg, and was employed for a fair number of years by Hans Schulman. I think he later worked for Manfra, Tordella & Brookes, Inc (MTB).

I found the news item on Osborne interesting, although not factual. Osborne wasn't even in business in 1864, when Lincoln ran for president.

According to my notes, in 1835 Z. Bisbee established a business that, in 1848, was taken over by Ira Bisbee. In the early 1850s the company became known as Bisbee and Stanton. An 1855 directory lists Ira Bisbee and John Stanton as partners in a brand and stencil cutting business at 249 W. 5th Street. An employee, James Murdock, worked for John Stanton from 1855 to 1861, at which time he formed his own company (the names Stanton and Spencer are both well known to collectors of Civil War tokens). Murdock later purchased Stanton's business in partnership with William W. Spencer and, in 1870, he purchased Spencer's share of the business under the name James Murdock, Jr. The name was later changed to The James Murdock Jr. Company, and still later to The Murdock Stamp & Specialty Company.

The Osborne Register Company was established by Wiley Osborne in 1920. During the 1920s the company acquired the assets of the Insurance Credit System Company (formerly Ingle System Company), and also the Murdock Stamp & Specialty Company.

When the irradiated coins were being discussed, mention was made of some of the coins being mounted on a card explaining the process (which was already discussed in detail). Attached is an image of one of those cards with the encased dime attached.

In the discussion of the Bathing Absent Minded Beggar Medal, you inserted a query asking for examples of medals related to sewerage but I do not recall any published response. In any case, I humbly submit the attached medal awarded for important work in upgrading efficiency in access to the sewage system. It reads:

THE ROYAL SANITARY INSTITUTE FOUNDED 1876 / (FEMALE WITH PLATE, SNAKE WRAPPED AROUND HER ARM) / PRIZE MEDAL // AWARDED AT THE INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS &EXHIBITION ON SCHOOL HYGIENE TO J. DUCKETT & SONS, LTD. FOR "SOLENT" SCHOOL URINAL RANGE FOR THREE PERSONS, 1907 (ALL ENGRAVED).

Bronze, oval, 51mm by 40mm, harshly polished and encased in a lucite block, no signature nor edge mark.

The latest Elsen catalogue has some coins from a 1724 VOC wreck, the SLOT TER HOOGE. The printed catalogue has some interesting text about the contemporary salvage of the majority of the cargo by an Englishman using an early diving suit and also the modern recovery of more coins and some previously unseen bullion bars. This text does not seem to appear in their on-line catalogue.