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Introducing N. Haler


By Barry Homrighaus RM1548, Marc Banks HLM538

In November of 2024, I went after a coin (#1 below) in an eBay auction because I thought it looked familiar, and might match another that I had seen—perhaps in the OHNS Archives. I won the auction, and no sooner had I finished paying than I received a call from my friend Marc Banks, who told me he had a coin that matched my purchase. His coin (#2) was a good match indeed. It turns out that my eBay purchase looked familiar, because I had previously acquired the third match (#3) at OHNS Auction #29 in 2023.

With these three coins in hand, Marc and I knew we had a match. We got busy with the most recent Auction catalog, and didn’t get around to submitting these three coins for approval until after the last F.U.N. Show. In the meantime, while I was working the OHNS table at the F.U.N. Show, a coin dealer from Pennsylvania approached me with a handful of hobo nickels, seeking information on originality and potential value. I offered to purchase a couple of her coins on the spot, one of which is the fourth match (#4) below.

Marc and I thought for quite a while before coming up with a nickname for this carver. These are interesting and relatively high quality carvings, with the most distinctive feature being the flared nostril. Unfortunately, a lot of nicknames that are “nostril-centric” are already taken. We considered “Ferdinand” for the young bull who would rather smell the flowers than fight the matador, but settled on “N. Haler”, since this fellow looks like he’s doing a deep breathing exercise.

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#1
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#2
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#3
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#4

The carving characteristics for "N. Haler" are listed as follows:

  1. Low crowned derby hat with a crescent shaped, down turned brim.
  2. Hatband follows the curve of the brim and is decorated with vertical cuts.
  3. Punched hair, beard, and mustache. Beards have a similar outward swell at the cheek. Three of the four examples show a gap between the mustache and beard at the end of the mouth.
  4. Ears are medium sized with two engraved lines for the rim and a punch at the center.
  5. The hair and beard meet below the ear creating a distinctive inverted "V" on the neck.
  6. All examples have a high, plain collar partly shaded with a liner tool.
  7. The enlargement of the nostrils appears to have been punched in an upward direction, creating yhe distinct "flare."
  8. All four examples on early dated nickels (1913-16).