Keen-eyed readers of last Sunday’s E-Sylum have undoubtedly spotted the numismatic celebrity on the cover of   Collecting Coins in Retirement—none other than hobby stalwart Ray Williams.

From the book’s copyright page: “Ray Williams, a colonial coin expert from Trenton, N.J., won third place in Whitman Publishing’s ‘Share Your Hobby’ photo contest with this image. The photo, taken by Ray’s wife Diane, shows Ray studying his collection at his desk. Appreciating one’s coins in such a manner, carefully weighing their emotional value versus the potential returns of their sale, and considering their significance as family heirlooms are all important tasks to undertake in retirement.”

Many thanks for your efforts which certainly enhance our fine hobby. In the January 17th issue of The E-Sylum you requested a photo of Stanley Apfelbaum. I thought I would send one I found. It came from the July 1980 First Coinvestor / First Stampvestors Rare Coin And Stamp Advisory.

Pete may be writing about Hiram E. Deats, the Philatelic [and Numismatic] Farmer from Flemington. In more recent times, Frank Van Zandt was a prominent farmer in Livonia, New York, whose 19th century family farmhouse was located on the eponymously named road where cattle were driven down to the river for transport.

My question was prompted by research I was doing on Robert H. Gore, Jr. (1908-2002). He started collecting coins at ten years old while a newsboy in Terre Haute, Indiana.

Gore graduated from Notre Dame in 1931 with a degree in agriculture. He operated a poultry and grain farm for fifteen years near Lake Zurich, Illinois. He married Margaret Powers and had five children.

In 1946 he moved to Florida to work with his father who was successful in insurance and the newspaper business. The son rose through the company until he was chairman of the board for the North American Company. I suspect that his interest in numismatics benefited from employment in a more lucrative field.

Bibliomaniacs may not be familiar with the Gore name because his collection did not sell at auction in a named sale. Who knows what happened to the Gore coin collection?