THE COIN DEALER

The Coin Dealer was launched by Krause Publications as a monthly with the August, 1963 issue in quarto format on heavy newsprint and printed in one color over black and white. The first cover featured a vintage Kent Company coin board from 1935, its color changed to a fanciful pink. It was seeing this issue on eBay that got me started in collecting the publication.

The format changed to octavo with Volume 3 at the beginning of 1965, and the cover was now multi-color on slick paper, though the pages remained b&w with a single color added to just a few pages. Publication stopped after the April, 1966 issue, but The Coin Dealer returned in July under new ownership. The size was unchanged, but both the cover and pages were thereafter newsprint in b&w only. The weight of this paper was reduced by the September, 1966 issue, which is quite flimsy and the last one in my collection. This may have been the final issue, as the coin hobby was in a deep slump at the time.

Other than listing Chester L. Krause as publisher, the early issues provide no credits. When KP adopted the octavo format in 1965, a full listing of staff was provided. In addition to Krause as publisher, the roster included Executive Editor Edward C. Rochette and Managing Editor Alfred J. Varner. I don't recognize a single name among the remaining staff credits. The very first issue opened with the reasons for creating a publication devoted solely to the "manufacturer, supplier and dealer... It is to you this publication is devoted."

The new owner in 1966 was Middaugh Printers of Sugarcreek, Ohio. Editor and Publisher was Wade Middaugh, a name that means nothing to me. In his first editorial message, Middaugh proclaimed that "Editors like Mr. Krause and his staff we are not...but we have been printers for a number of years and coin collectors for a few..."

July, 1965 and July 1966 Issues

There are some great articles in The Coin Dealer, such as an illustrated profile of Empire Coin Company during its peak years of operation, just before it was absorbed into Paramount International Coin Corporation. Industry news includes announcement of new coin shops, the hiring of new persons by well known companies and the debut of new coin albums and assorted hobby gadgets. The ads are very entertaining, as coin collecting was seen as an activity that could only grow at the time. Sadly, the years 1965-67 brought a heavy dose of reality and many casualties among both businesses and products.

	NBS (coinbooks.org) Web