Dave Hess was a specialist in British coins, mainly early. I believe he was known mainly thru his FPLs. I expect there are issues in the ANS library. I never knew him, but someone once told me I reminded him of Hess, a comment intended as high praise. It occurs to me that the more committed Anglophiles of the US coin trade may be less well known in the USA than generalists. Maybe it's the narrow focus, maybe they're too courtly.

I have a few his coin lists that I have kept since I was a college student in the late 1960s and was just in the process of discovering British coins. He dealt in British coins on a part-time basis but his lists were extensive, nicely detailed and a pleasure to read. I talked with him a time or two on the telephone and he was friendly and helpful and very knowledgeable about the series.

He lived in the south—Louisiana? But he did not have a southern accent. As then 70s progressed I lost touch with him. I seem to recall his announcing his retirement from coins about that time. From time to time I would run across coins with his name on the envelope and I valued the pedigree.

I knew Dave Hess most of the time he was in business, and stayed in contact for a few years after; however, around forty years have gone by since then. The last thing I heard was perhaps ten or more years ago, and that was that he was still working for the State of Louisiana. There is still a David Hess in Baton Rouge, at the same Post Office, too, but with a different box number. But allow me to backtrack a bit:

Dave Hess played a major role in getting American collectors interested in collecting British coins, especially hammered issues before 1662. Dave Bowers preceded Dave Hess by highlighting Victorian copper coins on his lists in the 1950s, Dave Hess helped make hammered coins a popular collecting specialty in the 1960s. He began his mail order business in 1962 or 1963.

My first list was #1-64 from January, 1964 and these continued until the business was closed in September and October 1968. His lists were very popular and sold out quickly. The lists from 1966 and 1967 were reprinted and perfect bound and available to anyone who wanted to buy a bound copy. Dave sold his library to Spink and Son at the close of his business. He was a fulltime CPA, and chose to concentrate on that profession. His remaining stock was sold at auction, but I never found out who auctioned the coins.

This probably doesn’t help Doug too much, but it also adds to my curiosity as well. I have some other interesting Dave Hess stories, but that’s for a later time.