In Search Of .... G. R. CLARKE

At a Florida coin show during the 1990's an unusual countermarked coin caught my attention. The coin was part of an exhibit that was being displayed by Jim Young. The countermark consisted of two separate punches, and read as follows: "G. R. CLARKE / POTTSTOWN". It was stamped on a U.S. Large Cent that also had four holes drilled through it. Several years later I was able to track down Jim Young and find out the current location of the coin. It is shown in figure 1.

Figure 1 - The first known
G. R. CLARKE countermark.

During the next few months, I often thought about this coin. I wondered where, when, and how it was used. However, as time went by, other interests intervened, and I forgot about the coin. Several years later I found myself living in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. After seeing a road sign for Pottstown, which is near Lancaster, the memory of this countermarked coin came back to me, and I decided that it was the perfect time to research it, since there was a good chance that the coin had been countermarked in that nearby city. The search for information led me to many sources.

Internet Research

Searching the internet has become the first order of business for token research projects. The name (G. R. Clarke) and the city (Pottstown) were typed into an internet search engine. In this case, it resulted in no relevant hits being found. The "old fashioned" research methods would have to be used. I started with the postal guides.

United States Postal Guides

The U.S. Postal Guides were first published during the mid-19th century. The first complete list of all U.S. post offices was published in 1863. The postal guides contain a surprising amount of information, including a list of all place names that had a post office. Several of the early United States postal guides have been digitally scanned and are now available online. Many have also been reprinted and are available in book form at low cost.

According to the postal guide from 1870, only one place named Pottstown in the United States had a post office in that year: Pottstown, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. So the odds were good that G. R. Clarke was located in Pottstown, Pa. The next place to search was the city directories.

City and Business Directories

City, business, and trade directories are very useful sources of information for token research. I decided to check the city and business directories for Pottstown from the mid-to-late 19th century, if any could be found. During a research visit to the American Antiquarian Society I discovered that they have a city directory for Pottstown in their collection. It is dated 1874-75, and is a combined directory for the cities of Norristown, Bridgeport, and Pottstown (all three cities are located in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania). The directory contains a single listing for the last name Clarke, in the Pottstown section, on page 188, as follows:

    "George R. Clarke, saloon, 127 High h do"

Bingo! At this point, I knew that G. R. Clarke operated a saloon on High Street in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, in 1874, and probably earlier and/or later as well. I also knew that his first name was George. I was still curious to learn more about this person, and hopefully discover why the countermarked coins were issued. The next place to look was the census records.

U.S. Federal Census Records

The U.S. federal census records are a prime source of information for countermarked coin researchers, especially 1850 and afterwards, when each adult's occupation began being recorded. According to the census records, George R. Clarke was living in Pottstown in both 1860 and 1870. In 1860, his occupation was listed as "Confectioner", and in 1870 he was listed as a "Restaurant Keeper" (see figure 2).

Figure 2 - 1860 Federal census entry for G. R. Clarke & family

I would later find out that Clarke was the appointed federal census taker for Pottstown for both decades (1860 & 1870), and that most of the census data that I had been looking at was recorded in his own handwriting! (see figure 3). It was now time to contact a local historical society.
  

Figure 3 - 1860 Federal Census, signed by G. R. Clarke.

Historical Societies

Historical societies are often overlooked gold mines of information. I searched for historical societies that were located in or near Pottstown, and was able to find two: the Pottstown Historical Society in Pottstown and the Montgomery County Historical Society in nearby Norristown. Of course, onsite research at historical societies isn't always possible for every project, but it can often be the most enjoyable part.

I contacted the Pottstown Historical Society (PHS), and left a phone message asking if they would be able to provide some research assistance. About a week later, I received a phone call from David Kerns, who is a volunteer at the PHS. David is the town historian for Pottstown. He mailed a handwritten report to me that contained lots of interesting details about Clarke's life. I then visited the PHS on two different occasions to speak with David and to conduct further research. During those two visits, I was able to discover the following information.

GEORGE R. CLARKE

The following chronology provides some highlights of the life of George R. Clarke. Much of the information was gathered from old newspaper articles.

• His full name was George Rogers Clarke.
• He was born in 1831 or 1834 in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and moved to Pottstown in 1853.
• During his first few years in Pottstown he worked as a clerk in the Beecher & Wingard store. It is doubtful that the countermarked coins would have been issued during that job.
• By 1858 he was proprietor of a confectionery and ice cream store at High and York streets (High Street is the "Main Street" of Pottstown). His store is thought to have been originally located in the Merchant's Hotel, in one of the shops on the ground floor (see figure 4).

  

  Figure 4 - Merchant's Hotel, Pottstown, Pa.

• Later in 1858 he opened a branch store near High and Hanover streets.
• In May 1860 Clarke was appointed deputy marshal to conduct the U.S. federal census for Pottstown, Montgomery County. He was later appointed to conduct the census again in 1870. As mentioned earlier, both sets of census records are mostly in Clarke's own handwriting. xxx
• In 1862-1863 Clarke served in the civil war as a member of Company H, 68th Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers, and was injured in the Battle of Fredericksburg. He was mustered out of the service on 27 January 1863 on a Surgeon's certificate, as a result of his battle injuries.
• In 1863, Clarke opened a restaurant after his return home from the war. The first mention of his restaurant appeared in the local newspaper on 01 December 1863. On that day he placed a one column, page-long advertisement in the Montgomery Ledger (see figure 5). 

  

  Figure 5 - Newspaper advertisement.

  His restaurant/saloon was called "Clarke's Headquarters", and it was located at 125 High Street. This is the most likely place where the countermarked coins were issued and used. The only known photograph of the restaurant shows just a few feet of the right end of the building. The last two letters of the "RESTAURANT" sign can be seen, as well as the address (125).
   
• Clarke was a member, and Grand Master, of the Pottstown Masonic Lodge. I found out that a former grand master of the lodge made an effort during the 1930's to locate photographs of all previous lodge grand masters. A wall display was created that contains all of the photographs that he was able to find. This display is still mounted on a wall in the Pottstown Masonic Hall, and I was permitted to take a photograph of it. Because of that man's timely effort, we have a photographic image of George R. Clarke (see figure 6). This is the only known surviving image of Clarke.

  

  Figure 6 - George Rogers Clark, the issuer of the countermarked coins.
• The level of Clarke's civic involvement is amazing. In addition to the above, he was an officer of a large number of fraternal organizations, he held numerous civic offices, and he ran for several elected political offices.
• Clarke died in 1876 at the age of 43. He was sitting at his desk eating an apple when he suffered a stroke. His wife operated the restaurant for several years after he died.
• In 1909, the Clarke restaurant building was demolished.

Newspapers & Obituaries

Old newspapers and obituaries are another prime source of information for token researchers. Many historical newspapers have now been digitized and placed online, making them easy to search.

The Pottstown area newspapers from the 1860's and 1870's provide a large amount of information about George R. Clarke that is probably not recorded elsewhere. In addition to Clarke's advertisements and published columns (he was a regular newspaper correspondent), a comprehensive obituary also appeared. Clarke's entire life was summarized in the obituary notice, information that would have been lost had it not been published at the time of his death. His funeral was described in a separate article, and was said to have been "one of the largest funerals that has ever taken place in Pottstown".

A newspaper article from April 1909 stated that the "Old Clarke Restaurant" building located at 125-127 High Street would soon be demolished. As already mentioned, the only known photographic image of the building is incomplete. David Kerns of the PHS said that a complete photograph of Clarke's restaurant exists, but it cannot be found.

County Courthouse Records

Next up, the Montgomery County courthouse archives were searched. They contain George R. Clarke's will and probate documents, estate papers, and property deeds. His death was confirmed as having occurred in 1876. His estate inventory was sold at auction the following month. Among the items sold were two "Calvary Sabres", probably his own from the Civil War. One sold for 80 cents and the other sold for 2 dollars. Clarke apparently had many creditors at his death. The largest debt of all was owed to a creditor for "Beer" ($254.50). Two other large debts were owed for "Segars". Both of these items would have been offered to customers in Clarke’s saloon.

The Countermarked Coins

There are currently seven known examples of the "G. R. CLARKE / POTTSTOWN" countermark:

1. 1826 U.S. Large Cent – Merchant collection, ex. Dave Bowers Collection (see figure 7).
2. 1839 U.S. Large Cent – Seen on eBay (January 2008).
3. U.S. Large Cent (date worn) – Merchant collection (a duplicate).
4. 1819 U.S. Large Cent – PCAC Auction 82 (June 2012), Lot 558. Now in the John Kraljevich collection.
5. U.S. Large Cent (date worn) – This is the coin that was displayed by Jim Young. It has four holes drilled through it, possibly for use as a button. Jim acquired the coin during the 1980’s, and then gave it to John Kraljevich in 2010, after hearing that the Pottstown area was John's hometown.
6. 185x U.S. Large cent (last digit uncertain) – Holed, unknown location (see figure 8).
7. U.S. Large Cent (date worn) – Seen on eBay (January 2014).

Figure 7 - Coin #1 in the above list.

Figure 8 - Coin #6 in the above list.

I was not able to find mention of Clarke's countermarked coins in any contemporary reference. They could have been used as tokens at Clarke's confectionary store or more likely at his restaurant/saloon. Perhaps each token was good for one glass of beer, or good for one "segar". Another possibility is that they were used as advertisement tokens during one of Clarke's election campaigns.

Though their exact purpose is not yet known, they would have been used sometime during the years 1858 to 1876. No other tokens are known for any of Clarke's businesses. These are currently the only known countermarked coins from Pottstown, Pennsylvania.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank David Kerns and Clara Hoss of the Pottstown Historical Society for their valuable assistance. Without their help, much information about George R. Clarke would have remained unknown to the writer.


References:

1. Pottstown Historical Society, Pottstown, Pa.
2. David Kerns and Clara Hoss (of the PHS).
3. Pottstown Library, Pottstown, Pa.
4. Montgomery County Courthouse - Records Archive.
5. American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Massachusetts.
6. Norristown/Bridgeport/Pottstown city directory: 1874-75.
7. U.S. Federal Census: 1860, 1870.
8. The Montgomery Ledger (newspaper): 12/1/1863, 12/8/1863, 5/6/1873, 2/22/1876, 2/29/1876.
9. Daily Pottstown Ledger (newspaper): 4/23/1909, 5/27/1909.
10. History of the Pennsylvania Volunteers (1861-1865), by Samuel P. Bates, 1869.
11. Interviews with Jim Young and John Kraljevich.