½ Dollar (Albany, New York Charter) obverse½ Dollar (Albany, New York Charter) reverse
United States

½ Dollar (Albany, New York Charter)

United States · Silver

The coin

The story

The 1936 Albany Charter Half Dollar

In 1936 the city of Albany turned 250 — and minted a coin to celebrate. It put a beaver on one side, the moment its charter was granted on the other, and a $2 price tag on the whole thing. Buyers shrugged. The bank melted thousands. What survived is one of the prettiest, and quietly scarcest, classic commemoratives.

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