Thomas Coulson, CPA, C.E.O. and Owner
I consider myself blessed to have a career that is so enjoyable and satisfying. My work entails numerous and diverse new challenges every day. My satisfaction comes from working with colleagues and interacting with customers who have many shared interests. I have had the opportunity to forge many lifelong friends in this business and consider them part of my extended family.
I love to share my collecting interests with people. I hope that I can instill in others an appreciation for the value of entertainment and knowledge learned through numismatics. I am especially excited to encourage young numismatists to join the hobby. This is not only crucial to the future of the hobby, but also an excellent and rewarding way for kids and young adults to learn about our world. I have fostered a kid-friendly culture at our store where questions are welcome and encouraged and interesting and historic material is always on display for all to see.
I have also been a mentor to several people who have gone on to pursue a career in numismatics. I am always happy to share what I know with others to further their knowledge about coins and aspects of dealing with them. I have also introduced many customers to new collecting interests and helped them with suggestions and ideas to work on their collections.
As an avid student of history, I often like to build numismatic collections around historic novels or non-fiction I have read. Coins have the potential for intrigue as conduits to the past. I can hold a Roman Denarius of Titus, for example, and imagine myself at the opening of the Coliseum. My coins have taken me to such places as the Parthenon, Colonial New England, the halls of Versailles, and my ancestor’s home town of Hull, England. I have traveled with the armies of Alexander, Peter the Great, Napoleon, Grant and Lee. I visited the magnificent White City of Chicago and walked along its Court of Honor. I imagined the great hardships faced by the Ibo tribe in Nigeria in its bid to become an independent nation. No destination in time or distance is too great for one who possesses an open mind, some good literature, and – a coin! I want to inspire everyone to think about numismatics this way. I believe that anyone can find something within the hobby that will offer a personal connection to their life and become richly rewarding to them and their friends and family at the same time.
I hold memberships in many numismatic organizations including life memberships in the American Numismatic Association (ANA), Michigan State Numismatic Society (MSNS), Central States Numismatic Society (CSNS), and Florida United Numismatists (FUN). I am currently serving on the MSNS Board of Directors. I have also sponsored exhibit awards and dealer refreshments for the MSNS Spring and Fall Conventions for several years.
I keep my numismatic knowledge relevant by continually studying and collecting in new areas of the hobby as my interests dictate. There are so many areas of Numismatics that interest me, that I find it impossible to limit myself to one collecting area. I have also written the “How to Collect” series of articles exclusive to the Liberty Coin Service website. This group of articles focuses on exploring different and interesting ways to collect a wide variety of coin series.
When I am not at work, I enjoy spending time with my wife Jennifer, our daughter Abigail, and son Nicholas. One of my primary jobs is creating happy memories for my kids. To this end, we enjoy travelling around the country and to Northern Michigan as a family. I encourage my children to be physically active and value all school subjects; as I believe in a broad and varied life experience.
My past and Present collecting interests include the following:
* Denotes active collection
Roman Imperial Coinage *
Byzantine Gold Solidii
British Coinage, 1000AD-Present
French Ecus, 1643-1792
World Crowns, 17th and 18th Century
Coinage of Russian Tsars *
Crowns of the Americas
Foreign Coins struck at U.S. Mints
World Coins of 1969 *
Coins of Canada and British North America, 1858-1968
Contemporary circulating counterfeit coinage
U.S. Type Coins
U.S. Large Cents
U.S. Lincoln Cents
U.S. Half Dimes
U.S. Bust Half Dollars
U.S. Liberty Seated Half Dollars
U.S. Walking Liberty Half Dollars *
U.S. Franklin Half Dollars
U.S. Kennedy Half Dollars *
U.S. Liberty Seated Dollars
U.S. $5.00 Gold Indians
World’s Columbian Exposition Tickets and selected medals *
National Banknotes from cities my family lived in *
National Banknotes from banks robbed by John Dillinger
Michigan State University, Michigan State College, and Michigan Agricultural College memorabilia *
Michigan Official Roadmaps *
Mackinaw Bridge Memorabilia
If you share any of these collecting interests, I am happy to talk with you about them and share what I know. In addition, I love to show off my collections!
