RCC/The High Point, NC Mint

The High Point, NC Mint

Though High Point, NC has never attained a lofty status among the elite of numismatic cities in this country, it was home the proud home to Capitol Medals, Inc. a producer of a broad range of commemorative medals during the 1960s and early 1970s.

Figure 1 - North Carolina Capitol

I first became aware of Capitol Medals while thumbing through issues of the ANA’s The Numismatist from the mid-1960s. Each month, or nearly so, a Capitol Medals advertisement appeared touting the latest release in its “States of the Union” medal series. Each piece honored an individual state and featured a view of the State Seal on the obverse and the State Capitol on the reverse. The medals were available to collectors in clear and gold anodized aluminum, oxidized bronze, 0.999 silver (with a proof finish) and platinum. The medals were struck in low- or coin-relief and were 1-17/32” in diameter — approximately the size of a U.S. silver dollar. The reverse of the North Carolina medal from the series is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 2 - C.S.S. Neuse

In addition to this series, the firm also produced commemorative medals for a number of organizations in and around North Carolina. One such piece was the medal depicting the C.S.S. Neuse. It was struck for the Lenoir County Confederate Centennial Committee to help raise funds for the restoration and preservation of the Neuse, a Confederate Navy ironclad ship built (and destroyed) near Kinston, NC. Figure 2 presents the obverse of the piece.

They also produced a souvenir medal for the battleship U.S.S. North Carolina, which is now permanently docked in Wilmington, NC. “The Showboat,” as she was called, was built by the New York Naval Shipyard and was commissioned on April 9, 1941. During WWII, the ship participated in every major campaign in the Pacific. She was over 728 feet in length and displaced 35,000 tons. Her armament included nine 16-inch main guns, twenty 5-inch guns, and various other smaller weapons. She also featured two airplane catapults. The obverse of the medal is shown in Figure 3.

Figure 3 - U.S.S. North Carolina

Other Capitol Medals releases included memorial medals honoring President John F. Kennedy and General Douglas MacArthur, restrikes of the Carolina Elephant token, and a commemorative for the centennial of Danville, VA — the last capital of the Confederacy.

Assembling a complete set of Capitols Medals releases is a daunting challenge today as the medals never developed a strong collector base and rarely are encountered in significant groups. I plan on cataloging the medals in the pages of The Carolina TAMS Journal over the next year or two and would welcome input from any RCC member that has any of the pieces in their collections.

Until next month, Happy Collecting!

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