THE 1864 ATLANTIC INTERNATIONAL CLUB MEDAL

Among the more unusual and curious objects in the ANS's collection is a silver medal (ANS 1967.225.23) 56.8 mm in diameter that was donated to the Society, along with ca. 3,000 other medals, in 1967 by the Wadsworth Athenaeum, which had received the medals as a bequest from J. Coolidge Hills in the 1920s.

The obverse of the medal depicts the paddlewheel steamship RMS Persia and is inscribed "The Atlantic International Club" along with the dates of a voyage from New York City to Liverpool between April 20th and 30th, 1864.

The reverse of the medal lists the "Members" of the Club including A.H. Schultz, Pres., Robt. Nicol, Treas., C.L. Derby, Theodore C. Weeks, Lt. Col. W.S. O'Connor, J.W. Bates, and the "Honorary Member," Henry D. Cooke. There is no record of such a Club existing in either the US or England so it is probable that this medal commemorates an ephemeral association of a half dozen or so gentlemen who perhaps met for the first time and formed friendships during their ten-day Atlantic crossing in April 1864.

To read the complete article, see:
THE ATLANTIC INTERNATIONAL CLUB, 1864 (http://numismatics.org/pocketchange/aic/)

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