CHARLES BARBER PHOTOS DISCOVERED

One of the aspects that hasn’t helped the image of Charles Barber is that the one photo of him that permeates numismatic literature and any mention of the man comes from a grainy old group photo from the mint, in which Barber appears as a grumpy old man. In meeting the family, we discover a beautiful painting of him, along with six never-before-seen photographs. These new pictures of him more accurately portray him as he has been viewed by the family all these years – as a warm and kind family man, blessed with good friends.

Other historical artifacts shown to me by the family include a bronze bust of Abraham Lincoln created by Charles Barber, along with the original Lincoln photograph Charles used to create it. Another remarkable item is a 39-star flag, which was presented to Charles Barber by President Theodore Roosevelt. Barber was to take the flag with him on his trip to Europe in 1905, in which he visited a number of foreign mints on an information-sharing mission.

Barber’s passport and numerous Mint memos (from various departments with questions they wanted Charles to ask their counterparts overseas) are also held by the family. And new information is learned from the diary of Charles’ 19-year-old daughter Edith, who accompanied her father and his wife on the European trip. The diary also provides strong evidence that Charles Barber and George T. Morgan, designer of the Morgan silver dollar, got along well, despite the assumptions of many that the two disliked each other.

The Barber Coin Collectors’ Society hopes that the old photo of Charles Barber will be retired in lieu of one of the seven new images of him that make a more accurate portrayal of him.

To read the complete article, see:
Seven new faces of Charles Barber (http://www.numismaticnews.net/article/seven-new-faces-of-charles-barber)

Wayne Homren, Editor

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