Where is this saloon token from?

[bucknut38]

View attachment 833620

 

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[JOHUNT]

John Adams Oak Saloon?

 

[doublet2a]

Sure like that token

Tim

 

[DCMatt]

I assume the last two pics show both sides?

Where did you find it?

DCMatt

 

[idahotokens]

That token is going to be tough to track down without at least a hint, like DCMatt says, of where it was found. The 1910 Census lists over 6000 people named John Adams in the USA, so we need a starting point. How about posting the pics on TokenCatalog.com and get a few more eyeballs looking at it? With your permission I could post it for you.
John in the Great 208

 

[Mackaydon]

Several Oak Saloons existed back in the day.
As mentioned by others above, knowing in which state this token was found might be helpful.
Don...

 

[bucknut38]

I found it in Van Wert Ohio

 

[Mackaydon]

Back in the day there was an Oak Saloon in Elkins, West Virginia.
Is that relatively close?
Don....
PS: Another Oak Saloon was in Mr. Olive, Indiana. These seem to straddle your find location.

 

[cudamark]

Cool token. What's it made of?

 

[idahotokens]

Thanks, Bucknut - no proof of where it is from, but here's some info. The 1910 Census for Van Wert shows John Adams as a retail merchant - tobacco. I can't find him or his wife, Mearl, in the 1900 Census. In 1910 they have two daughters, Wyona, 12, and Margie, 7.

The 1915 Lima, OH City Directory shows John Q. Adams - bartender. It is the same guy because the directory shows his wife's name as Mearl.

John Q. Adams registered for the draft in WWI - he said he was born 22 Jun 1875, his wife's name was Merl(sic), he resided at 414 N. Cherry in Van Wert, and that he was disabled due to consumption (tuberculosis).

The 1920 Census shows Mearl as a widow, with her younger daughter, Margie, both living with the older daughter Wyona and her husband David Marshal.

John Quincy Adams (1876 - 1919) - Find A Grave Memorial is the record of John Quincy Adams and Mearl Adams burial and also shows a photo of him. He died 29 Jan 1919 in Van Wert.

This is the end of the road for my research from this distance. I'd recommend you take a few hours off from detecting (say on a rainy day) and visit the Brumback Library and see if they have the Van Wert newspapers on microfilm for his death date and several issues thereafter. There may be an obituary or news article about his death that would tell about his career. While there, see if they have City Directories for the period 1900 - 1915. If so, see if he can be found, hopefully as proprietor of the Oak Saloon.

Of course, all of this may be barking up the wrong (Oak) tree and the token may be from elsewhere. Keep us posted with your research.
John in the Great 208

 

[Mackaydon]

Next to Van Wert county is Auglaize county. In 1899 there was an Oak Saloon in Auglaize County, the prop. was Wm. Haeseker.
Submissions to Auglaize County Death Record / Obituary
Don....

 

[bucknut38]

No idea on state its from.I can't find any info

 

[bucknut38]

Cherry St is 2 streets away from where I found it

 

[idahotokens]

cudamark - it is brass. The makers and their customers back then weren't too particular about the metal used. Brass alloys were the most common with aluminum coming into vogue after 1893. "German Silver" or white metal was a premium alloy that was often used. The brass ranged from yellow to red and is often mistaken for copper. WWII saw the introduction of zinc and fiber, then plastic and wood came later.
John in the Great 208

 

[idahotokens]

bucknut--I was hoping you would say that! Still not proof, but the evidence is building for a Van Wert attribution.
John in the Great 208

 

[bucknut38]

Thanks for your help.I will go to library this weekend and hope to solve this

 

[bucknut38]

I just found out that saloon row was originally on market street.The very street I found token on.Still gotta find evidence for Oak Saloon

 

[DCMatt]

Can't attribute John Adams but here is proof for the Oak Saloon in Van Wert:


DCMatt

 

[idahotokens]

We are getting closer! The newspaperarchive.com website is tempting. It used to be that one could look at 5 or 6 hits for free, now you only get to look at one article per day before you get blocked by the site and asked to subscribe. Firefox (for me, at least) doesn't load at all, but Chrome and Interwebs Explorer do.

And, BTW, I found John, Mearl, & Wyona Adams in the 1900 Census. He was shown as a saloon clerk and they were in the town of Haviland, 11 miles north of Van Wert.

John in the Great 208

 

[DCMatt]

We are getting closer! The newspaperarchive.com website is tempting. It used to be that one could look at 5 or 6 hits for free, now you only get to look at one article per day before you get blocked by the site and asked to subscribe. Firefox (for me, at least) doesn't load at all, but Chrome and Interwebs Explorer do.
John in the Great 208

The "free" article doesn't load for me either. There are a couple more at Newspaperarchive. Maybe bucknut will spend the $10 to join the site and look at them.

DCMatt