Jeff Garrett: The Byron Reed Collection and Exhibit

While doing research on various numismatic books and projects, one of the most interesting and rewarding experiences has been the study of museum collections. More than 25 years ago, we were able to convince the curators of the Smithsonian's National Numismatic Collection to let us do an exhaustive study of the nation’s gold coins. The Smithsonian collection is anchored by the US Mint and Josiah Lilly collections and unsurpassed by any in the country. Our deep dive into the collection resulted in the publication of The Encyclopedia of United States Gold Coins 1795-1933.

Since then, there have been visits to see the collections of the British Museum, the American Numismatic Society and several others. Many of these museums have material that is unpublished and, more importantly, not part of the population reports most collectors count on for information about rarity. Museums are also nearly blind to the idea of quality and how that impacts the importance of their holdings.

For example, one of my favorite coins in the Smithsonian collection is a relatively common 1907 $10 Indian, No Motto. The coin was formerly a part of the US Mint collection and is one of the best-preserved gold coins struck before 1933. The coin is nearly flawless and is only important because of condition. If sold at public auction, Registry Set collectors would wage a bloody battle to secure the coin.

One legendary museum collection that had been on our radar for some time was the Byron Reed Collection in Ohama, Nebraska. Until the late 1990s, the Byron Reed Collection was relatively unknown to most collectors. The collection made numismatic headlines when the city decided to deaccession parts of the collection to raise money for an expansion of the history museum. The city engaged the services of Spink America and Christie's to auction selected coins from the collection.

The 1996 auction catalog is a fascinating read and gives the history of Byron Reed and the amazing collection he assembled. Most of the coins were sold uncertified and with surprisingly little description. One of my favorite highlights of the sale is an 1864 Quarter Eagle that now grades NGC MS 67, with the next-best-known examples barely grading Mint State. There were dozens of other amazing coins sold as well, many of which later sold for seven figures.

Reviewing the 1996 catalog is an interesting study but gives little clue to what still remains of the Byron Reed Collection. A trip to Omaha would be required to examine the collection in detail. I was able to arrange the trip through the efforts of our good friend, Mitch Ernst (President of the Central States Numismatic Society) who lives in the city. He introduced us by email to the manager of the collection, Kristen Rowley. After some back and forth about details, the trip was planned.

The Byron Reed numismatic collection is housed at The Durham Museum. The history museum is in the Omaha Union Train Station, which was constructed in the 1930s. The museum’s Art Deco interior is both stunning and a fun reminder of the city’s vibrant past. The first floor features a cavernous, beautiful lobby with restaurants and the obligatory gift shop. The museum tells the story of Omaha’s business and natural history. We found ourselves easily distracted as we made our way to the rare coin exhibit on the bottom floor of the museum.

We had envisioned spending most of our time in the back rooms of the museum looking through trays of coins. However, when we reached the Byron Reed Collection in the museum, we were surprised to see an "old-school" exhibit of wooden showcases, with items telling the history of Byron Reed the collector and the history of money. The Durham Museum website states:

BYRON REED GALLERY

In the late 19th century, Omaha real estate agent Byron Reed gradually put together a stunning collection of coins, documents, books, maps and other items of great historical importance. Upon his death in 1891, Reed gave his collection to the city of Omaha, and it is now housed at The Durham Museum. Significant portions of Reed’s collection are on exhibit; of special interest is the "Treasures Cabinet," containing Reed’s specimen of the 1804 Dollar.

The Byron Reed Collection also includes:

• Ancient Coinage – Roman Imperial, Byzantine, Ancient Greek, and Egyptian
• Colonial Coins
• Documents, Manuscripts, Autographs and Books
• Exonumia: America’s “Other Money”
• Federal-Issue Coinage
• Medals
• Paper Currency
• Patterns
• Political Memorabilia
• Territorial Gold
• Tokens

No study of the collection is complete without a study of the collector himself, Byron Reed. Reed was born in 1829 and came to Omaha in 1855 when the city was a small town with potential for great expansion due to its location as a conduit to the West. In 1856, he founded the first real estate company in Nebraska. Reed soon became the city’s wealthiest and most influential landowner.

The newfound wealth allowed him to pursue an interest in collecting historical books, documents, coins and currency from around the world. He was able to build one of the finest coin collections in the country. Reed died in 1891 and his will provided for the support of a permanent public library and the donation of his massive collection to the City of Omaha, Nebraska. Eventually, the collection was removed from public view due to security concerns and transferred to the Durham Museum in 1985.

The collection is an interesting examination of the collecting habits of a wealthy person of means in the late 19^th century. Much of Byron Reed's correspondence with dealers of his day still remains in the collection. His noted catalog of the Parmelee sale of 1890 is particularly interesting. Many of the most important coins, including the famed 1804 Silver Dollar, were purchased from this sale. Sadly, Reed died the following year, giving him little time to enjoy his new acquisitions.

After examining the limited number of coins on display in the gallery, we next moved to the back rooms of the numismatic department. The curators were extremely gracious and provided us with plenty of workspace to conduct our research. As mentioned above, we had very little knowledge about what to expect when offered the chance to research the collection. The number of coins sold in 1996 was relatively small, though the coins that were selected were higher-value items. Thus, there were many coins left to be examined.

We started by requesting to see the trays of gold coins, our primary objective for inclusion in the next edition of the Encyclopedia of US Gold Coins. Sadly, we were both stunned by how few United States gold coins still remained in the collection. There are some highlights to be sure, including a Gem 1829 Large Planchet Half Eagle. Unfortunately, many of the other denominations in the collection have scant representation.

After reviewing the trays of gold coins, we both discussed how the Byron Reed Collection clearly illustrates the lack of interest in mintmarked coins in the late 19^th century. Collectors of the day were much more interested in historical material, such as Washingtonia and colonial coinage. Collecting coins by date and denomination sufficed, even for the wealthiest collectors. It was not until the 1893 publication of Augustus Heaton’s A Treatise on the Coinage of the United States Branch Mints that collecting by mintmarks became popular.

The public-facing portion of the collection presents a variety of numismatic material, including cases with American Colonial coins, Pattern coins, regular issue coins, tokens, medals and world coins — most accompanied with enlarged images and interesting narratives. The highlight of the exhibit is a case containing only five coins (but what amazing coins they are): a New England Shilling, a 1797 Capped Bust, Small Eagle $10, an Original 1804 Silver Dollar, an 1850 Dubosq & Co. $5 and an 1877 $50 Half Union Pattern in Copper.

The overall presentation of the exhibits is excellent, with plenty to excite serious numismatists and enough to interest and educate the general public. Our one suggestion would be to increase the lighting, so the coins are easier to view; this was a complaint we had heard before.

Behind the scenes, the Reed Collection is well maintained, organized and secured. In the administrative area outside the vault, one wall consists of a bank of desktops and workspaces. The opposite wall houses a useful library consisting primarily of modern numismatic reference books, with some older catalogs and publications mixed in. The coins themselves are arranged in trays that are housed inside of two locked cabinets in the vault room.

The vault room also contains Reed’s documents, correspondence and literature, all neatly arranged in boxes. We were given the opportunity to peek into several of the boxes to view the treasures they contained. It seems that Reed had a particular affinity for anything related to George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. In fact, his obsession with Lincoln extended beyond coins, medals and documents since Reed named his only son Abraham Lincoln in 1865, in honor of the slain president.

Having visited the inner sanctums of several numismatic museums, we were struck by the neatness, cleanliness and organization of Reed’s collection. The majority of the coins are housed in PVC-free "flips," allowing for hands-free viewing of both sides of the coin. Each "flip" includes a tag with each coin’s unique identifying number and a short description. In turn, the "flips" rest in a hard plastic holder with a similar matching identification tag.

Even the coins on public display have their own "flip" and holder in the trays, allowing the staff to easily rotate coins in and out, yet still keeping them organized. Unfortunately, no "flips" or holders remain for the coins that were sold in 1996; thus, it is difficult to get a sense of the entirety of the Reed collection as it was originally formed.

The museum staff maintains an inventory spreadsheet of the entire Reed collection, which made it very easy for us to make notes as we examined each coin. We allocated two full days to reviewing the collection and we were able to accomplish our goal thanks to the help of the inventory listing. Over the years, notes from various researchers have made their way into the inventory. For instance, notes from Saul Teichman, a well-known researcher of Pattern coins and provenances, have been incorporated into the inventory listing. Now, the listing has been updated to include the grades we assigned to the coins.

In viewing the collection, we were struck by several things. First, there was the seemingly inconsistent quality of the coins. For example, it was difficult for us to understand how someone with the means to purchase an 1804 Silver Dollar and two Gem 1829 Half Eagles could not afford to purchase a nicer run of early Half Dimes. Even Reed’s 1802 Half Dime, a great rarity in its own right, is an About Good with a barely legible reverse. This led us to consider that some of his coins may have been pilfered in the past and replaced with lower-grade examples. We don’t have any evidence to support this conclusion, but that is the only explanation that we could come up with.

Second, Reed had a clear affinity for Pattern coins, as evidenced by the extensive collection he built. He purchased many of his Pattern coins at a time when they barely cost much more than their face value. For example, Reed purchased a copper 1879 Flowing Hair $4 Stella at the Parmelee sale for $1.15. He gobbled up many Patterns that frequently sold for less than a dollar apiece. For his two Gobrecht Dollars in copper, Reed paid $26 each. He bought complete sets of Pattern coins in copper and aluminum at bargain prices.

Reed’s name appears as a buyer less frequently among the regular issue coins, but his name is usually next to an important rarity, such as the 1804 Silver Dollar for $570, or a 1796 Half Cent for $110, or a Gem 1829 $5 Large Planchet for $52. However, Reed made several additional purchases that included some amazing deals. If the priced Parmelee catalog can be believed, Reed purchased a three-piece 1873 Proof set of the $2.50, $5 and $10 denominations for $7.10 (less than half of the face value). He did it again a few lots later when he purchased a three-piece 1875 Gold Proof set for $8.10.

Third, most of the regular issue silver coins in Reed's collection have a dusky, almost burnt look on one side (sometimes both sides). Apparently, the silver coins have been that way for many years, and it was explained that the dark toning may have been caused by environmental factors (soot from train exhaust?) or improper storage. Thankfully, the coins are well protected now and, hopefully, any further deterioration has been arrested.

Fourth, the collection could benefit from some good-quality digital images of the coins, with an eye to greatly enhance the online experience. Currently, there are very few images of Reed’s coins on the museum’s website. This is something that could be crowd-funded or sponsored to raise funds to overcome the budget constraints at the museum.

The authors encourage all of our numismatic friends to visit Omaha, not just to visit The Durham Museum and to see one of the best institutional coin collections in the United States, but to enjoy everything else that Omaha offers. Known as the "Gateway to the West," Omaha is home to great steaks, Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway, 11 colleges and universities, the Henry Doorly Zoo, the annual NCAA College World Series and many other reasons to visit.

Finally, the authors wish to thank Kristen Rowley and her assistants for arranging and facilitating our visit. We very much appreciate their kindness, courtesy and patience.

For further investigation, we offer the following resources:

• The Durham Museum website
• The Durham Museum Photo Archive of items from the Byron Reed Collection
• H.P. Smith’s priced and named copy of the 1890 Parmelee Collection on the Newman Numismatic Portal
• Inventory Ledgers of the Byron Reed Collection on the Newman Numismatic Portal

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