Challenge Coin Collecting
Challenge coin collecting has been around for a long time, however, they were kept in display racks in offices of military personnel, displays hung on walls, or other non-noticeable areas unlike their large presence on the internet today. They have been an integral part of many individuals careers and it has never been a mainstream type of hobby until the end of the 1990's. Sure, coins were around since the early 20th century but people didn't know what they were, the value of a challenge coin, or even the importance of one. The 21st century is where we are seeing a truly booming time in the hobby creating it to be one of the biggest hobbies in the world. Collecting has expanded off of eBay to websites, forums, Yahoo groups, and even into personal social events. People now engage directly in conversations and trades of these coins every day. The whole development process of the hobby has been almost a surreal event.
U.S. Challenge Coins has played a very large part in the expansion and accessibility of the hobby. Expanding with hundreds of articles, forums, and additional websites that really brought challenge coins off of eBay and into search. It wasn't just us. There were other companies that certainly played a hand in the expansion and some have faded away since the recession and outsourcing of production to overseas. Out of the survivors you can thank businesses like Northwest Territorial Mint, Military Service Company, and Highland Mint along with some other. All have played roles in the challenge coin hobby and established a credible hobby that we have come to know today. The men and women that started the tradition in the U.S. Military can smile knowing that today the tradition has spread to a global phenomenon.
Traditional collector's are men in their 30's and 40's that have made a career out of earning and trading coins. Those traditional lines have changed though in the last decade. Now we are seeing a shift to anyone and everyone collecting from eight-year olds to women. One of the fast collecting groups is international. Europe is overwhelmingly collecting coins faster than any group in the last few years and that's just by gauging the sales on eBay and what's seen in forums. One gentleman in England boasts a collection of 3,000+ coins. His collection is the one posted in the image for this article. Collections like his use to be unheard of but now they are just getting bigger and bigger and displayed with amounts of pride that can be seen in comparison to baseball cards.
With such a fast growing pace that challenge coin collecting has achieved in a short time, one can say this will be one of the biggest hobbies in the world. Though many people still might not be aware, important television programs like NBC Nightly News w/Brian Williams are highlighting the hobby and bring attention to the importance of it for many. As more and more people get involved the more it will become a very well accepted and valued area of collecting. If you have thought about getting involved then there is no time like the present to check things out and become a challenge coin collector.
