Hoard? of coins at the job!

[NOLA_Ken]

So for the past while we've been working on an old bar doing a lot of renovation work. Today I got on top of the back bar.... People familiar with old bar traditions will know that people used to throw change on top of the back bar..... Well they certainly did at this one! I didn't have much time so I just scooped up a few handfuls and tossed them in a bucket. After about an hour and a half of separating coins from paint chips, filth, and whatever else was blended in I came up with a nice little haul... I guess it could be called a hoard... I don't know what else to call it....

$8.75 in quarters
$2.70 in dimes
$9.30 in nickles
around $10 in pennies... I stopped counting after $5.....

For all that I ended up with one lonely 1942 Wheatie, but the number of 63 and earlier nickles has me thinking there has to be some silver and some older stuff up there. This all came from a roughly 1 foot square area and there is a lot more to go. Also there's a pretty good gap between the top and the wall, so who knows what might be waiting to be found down there? Even though this first bit was nothing spectacular, I'm more than happy with an extra $30.... I think I'll take the shop vac next time and get into all the tight spots and hopefully I'll get some silver to show for it....

 

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[DigIron2]

that is awesomeI bet you where like Scrooge Mcduck scooping them up.30$ isn't a bad tip at all.I bet that was exciting!

 

[redcobra8u]

Very interesting. Keep us posted on and silver you find!

 

[RJ55]

Nice haul

 

[MUD(S.W.A.T)]

It would be awesome if you found silver, but this is still pretty damn cool !!

Keep @ it and HH !!

 

[doc-d]

I agree, there is likely silver up there…….the shop vac seems like a good idea.

 

[AU Seeker]

Nice Haul, the history of the bar may tell you what to expect, e.g. when was the last time it was renovated, etc., if this is in New Orleans and it's been a while since the bar was renovated last you may also find some old and valuable Mardi-Gra memorabilia.

 

[DB Cooper]

Great find Ken !!

 

[rodarian]

How cool is that? I think i would have been laughing the whole day. Nice!

 

[NOLA_Ken]

Nice Haul, the history of the bar may tell you what to expect, e.g. when was the last time it was renovated, etc., if this is in New Orleans and it's been a while since the bar was renovated last you may also find some old and valuable Mardi-Gra memorabilia.

It's a pretty old New Orleans bar, so far there was one Mardi Gras dubloon in the mix, I'm sure there will be a lot of those by the time it's over. I forgot to even mention it because they're as common as pull tabs here almost.... The place has been a bar since before 1900, and I've found 1880's whiskey bottles in the attic already so I have a feeling there's some good stuff in there. As far as I know the last time anyone even looked up there would have been in the 80's last time the place was painted inside. Finding coins from the 50's that look to have been there quite a while though gives me hope for silver. I have a feeling that I'm going to be quite a happy camper when I get to see what's behind it all where noone can reach....

 

[huntsman53]

That is a nice haul and there is probably lots more to come! Congrats! Man, I would have stayed there after work and all night to clean out every single coin, token and whatever else got dropped or tossed behind the back bar.


Frank

 

[NOLA_Ken]

How cool is that? I think i would have been laughing the whole day. Nice!

It was killing me knowing that bucket was sitting in the truck all day while I was installing baseboards....

 

[huntsman53]

I would recommend making a sifter out of some 2x2's and wire mesh. This could make somewhat quick work of separating the coins, tokens and other possible goodies from the paint chips, dirt and debris!


Frank

 

[NOLA_Ken]

I would recommend making a sifter out of some 2x2's and wire mesh. This could make somewhat quick work of separating the coins, tokens and other possible goodies from the paint chips, dirt and debris!


Frank

I was thinking the same thing.... I was just looking at my shop vac thinking of ways to put a piece of hardware cloth in it....Thinking I could separate out all the small stuff there and not have so much to deal with when I dump it all out.... I have a feeling I'll be doing some inventing tomorrow.

 

[CoinandRelicMan]

Good story keep us posted on what else turns up Thanks !!

 

[jewelerguy]

dang! never heard of that tradition, but then again I don't do bars. wow, that's crazy

 

[g-olden years]

Thanks for including us in the fun -- looking forward to what else emerges! Congrats! Andi

 

[beez0404]

So you're going to be dredging for silver at the bar? How fun is that?

 

[treblehunter]

Nice find, more then likely the old stuff is on the bottom, you probably just pulled from the top? Interesting find, keep us posted!

 

[leviathanrick]

Very cool. When I do demo I usually only find animal droppings and wasp nests! Lol. I only once found something good in my 17 years as a contractor. I wear a barber dime and a merc around my neck for good luck that I found behind a medicine cabinet.