NEWMAN ON AM I NOT A WOMAN AND A SISTER

 

Eric P. Newman Speaks on Am I Not a Woman and a Sister

In 1994, Eric P. Newman presented at the ANS Coinage of the Americas conference on The Promotion and Suppression of Hard Times Tokens. Newman explored one particular token, AM I NOT A WOMAN AND SISTER (Low-54), within the greater context of token substitutes that resulted from a shortage of federal coinage. Newman was able to uncover the origin of this piece through a tedious search of contemporary anti-slavery newspapers. Many of these were religious in nature, which led Newman to comment I read so many newspapers I nearly went fundamentalist.

Newman connected the Low-54 token to an 1837 advertisement in The Emancipator, published by the American Anti-Slavery Society in New York. While the Low-54 token is today relatively available, the Low 54a variant (AM I NOT A MAN AND A BROTHER) is a well-known rarity, with only four examples known. The Newman example of the Low-54a, previously from Charles Ricard and sold to Newman by Q. David Bowers, c. 1993, was offered by Heritage Auctions in June 2016 (lot 98916).

Images: Low-54a Hard Times Token, AM I NOT A MAN AND A BROTHER, from the Newman collection.

Link to Eric P. Newman 1989 video, Promotion & Suppression of Hard Times Tokens:
https://archive.org/details/ANA89027PromotionandSuppressionofHardTimesTokens

Link to Lianna Spurrier 2020 video on Am I not a Man and a Brother:
https://archive.org/details/aminotamanandbrother

Link to ANS Coinage of the Americas Conference proceedings, The Token in America:
https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/book/512500

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