Numismatist Profile

W. DAVID PERKINS ANA 1127284

A lifelong collector and amateur genealogist discovers that numismatics is in his blood.

The collecting instinct is strong in Dave Perkins. You might even say numismatics is in his DNA. The 58-year-old Colorado executive, husband and father of four began his foray into the world of coins simply enough, but the more he learned, the more he realized that numismatics is an indelible part of who he is.

“My grandfather Gilbert ‘Buss’ Strong got me started collecting. He had a type set of U.S. coins that he stored in a fishing tackle box,” Perkins recalls. “Many of the pieces I had never seen before. He gave me some blue Whitman folders and a few coins, and the rest is history.” 

Thanks to his grandfather’s early instruction, Perkins knew just what to do with his first numismatic discovery. “In the late 1950s or early ’60s, my family and I were staying at my grandparents’ home in a Chicago suburb. One day, I was playing a game of hide-and-seek. I was sitting behind a bush, leaning against the house, when I found an 1857 Seated Liberty quarter in the dirt!” He tucked the coin into a white, 2 x 2-inch envelope and carefully labeled the outside with a blue ballpoint pen. “I still have the coin. It is very dark and very thin. Could it be a survivor of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871?” 

Perkins’ passion is collecting and studying 1794-1803 U.S. silver dollars by die variety. “I bought my first early dollar in 1984 and have written dozens of articles on the subject, the majority for the John Reich Journal,” he says.

But 20 years ago, Perkins’ collecting interests took a decidedly personal turn. An amateur genealogist, he began searching for tokens, medals and counterstamped coins bearing his family name. “I have a double-row box of ‘Perkins’ tokens, quite a few of which are likely unique,” he says. “My collection includes a 1788 Massachusetts cent and half cent, the dies having been made by a very direct relative—Jacob Perkins of Newburyport, Massachusetts.” 

Around 1992, Dave Perkins had a revelation. “I was studying in the ANA Library, looking through George Fuld’s Guide to Civil War Store Card Tokens, when I discovered the alphabetical index at the back of the book. Four store cards were indexed under ‘Perkins.’ Two were from Detroit: one for the Perkins Hotel, and the other for W. Perkins Jr. I was born in Detroit, and I knew my family went back pretty far there.” 

He was delighted when, almost five years later, he found a circulated Perkins Hotel token in a fixed price list. He called the dealer immediately. Perkins’ mother, who was visiting from Minne - apolis, overheard the conversation. “When I hung up, she turned to me and said, ‘You know our family owned the Perkins Hotel, don’t you?’” He did not. “What an exciting discovery!” Perkins recalls. “Later that night, I learned that a cigar box that had been given to me years earlier and was displayed prominently in my living room came from the Perkins Hotel!” 

Although his family has been very supportive of his hobby, Perkins seldom discussed his avocation with friends and coworkers. “In 1999 a job recruiter asked about my hobbies, and I told him I was a coin collector, author and expert on early dollars. We talked on this subject for quite a while, and he said I should mention it in my resume,” says Perkins.

“I did, and just about every person who has looked at my resume since has asked questions about coin collecting. It’s great,” he says. “I have a lot of good stories I can share with them.” 

—Barbara J. Gregory