Coin dealer purchases rare Carson piece

Rusty Goe just purchased his third example of a rare Carson City coin. All three purchases occurred over a three-month period, and cost Goe over $1 million.

Goe, owner of Southgate Coins in Reno, says examples of the three coins he bought, 1876-CC 20-cent pieces, are usually offered once a decade.

"For three of them to hit the market in a three-month period is unprecedented," he said.

The example Goe bought in July is linked to a Virginia City wagon maker named John Seagraves Peck. Peck acquired it from his friend, an employee at the Carson City Mint, in 1876. The coin remained in Peck's family for 133 years until Goe bought it in July.

"The coin comes with so much history," says Goe, "with its connection to the Comstock wagon maker who got it directly from the Carson City Mint."