Paul R. Eden papers, 1954-1964

Descriptive Summary

Repository
American Numismatic Society
Extent
1 cubic foot (3 boxes)
Language
English
Abstract
Correspondence, manuscripts, and typescripts relating to Eden’s efforts to gather information on the mints of various countries.

Part of a letter to Eden on coinage figures from the Royal Mint, London, March 28, 1963

Creator

Name
Eden, Paul R. (Paul Randell), b. 1923
Abstract
Paul R. Eden (b. 1923) of Madison Heights, Virginia, specialized in coins of the world.

Contents

Administrative Information

Access

Collection open to all researchers.

Preferred Citation

Paul R. Eden papers, 1954-1964, Archives, American Numismatic Society.

Restrictions

Copyright restrictions may apply. Permission to publish or reproduce must be secured from the American Numismatic Society.

Biographical Note

Paul R. Eden (b. 1923) of Madison Heights, Virginia, specialized in coins of the world. Although born in Virginia, Eden enlisted in the Canadian Army in 1940. He was stationed in Europe and Africa during World War II and was wounded in the invasion of Sicily in 1943. He married Doris Elizabeth Harper of the British Army’s Women’s Auxiliary Territorial Service in 1945. Having been trained in telegraphy during his overseas service, he was employed by the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad in Virginia after leaving the Canadian Army in 1947. He retired from the railroad in 1962, having been afflicted with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease). Eden bought his first coins in England in 1945, but didn’t begin collecting in earnest until 1953, when he started concentrating on dime- and sixpence-sized coins, about which little documentation existed. His research into the coins would result in a series of articles on the mintage figures for various countries. The first of what would be called “mintage manuals” was published in the New Zealand Numismatic Journal (July, 1961), with subsequent articles appearing in Numismatic Scrapbook Magazine, World Coin Bulletin, and World Coins.

Scope and Content Note

Correspondence, manuscripts, and typescripts relating to Eden’s “mintage manuals” and his efforts to gather information on the mints of various countries. Topics include number of coins minted, authorizing laws, alloy percentages, weights, diameters, and the date on the coin versus the mintage dates. Eden corresponded with government and private mints, libraries, and numismatic specialists, including Lauren Benson (Davenport, Iowa), Theodore V. Buttrey (Yale), Henry Christensen (Hoboken), Carlos Gaytan (Mexico), Glenn Godwin (Binghamton, New York), Lee F. Hewitt (Numismatic Scrapbook Magazine editor), Clyde Hubbard (Mexico), D. Wayne Johnson (Shawnee Mission, Kansas), William B. Peck (White Plains, New York), Jerome H. Remick (Canada), Whitman Publishing (Wisconsin), Jones Memorial Library (Lynchburg, Virginia), Raymond H. Williamson (Lynchburg), Randolph Zander (Alexandria, Virginia), American Numismatic Society (New York City), Birmingham Mint (England), Gorham Manufacturing Company (Providence, Rhode Island), Royal Canadian Mint, Royal Mint (London), Scovill Manufacturing (Waterbury, Connecticut), U.S. Mint, and Virginia State Library. Some of the correspondence relates to Eden’s efforts to sell his collection, and other letters, particularly those of William B. Peck, at times address topics unrelated to coins, such as Eden’s health. Eden also corresponded with representatives of Australia, British Honduras, British North Borneo, China, Cuba, Bulgaria, Serbia, Montenegro, Luxembourg, El Salvador, Venezuela, Danzig, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Fiji, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Jamaica, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Rumania, and Uruguay.

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