The Tankersley Collection of West Indian Coins and Tokens

Bill Tankersley

Bill Tankersley was born April 10, 1948, in Columbia, Tennessee, USA. He was a collector at a young age, first interested in Native American arrowheads that he would find in newly plowed fields, and beautiful and unusual rocks and stamps. As a teenager, Bill became interested in antique collectibles and persuaded his parents to invest in them, too. Bill’s parents are still living (ages 94 and 97) and have a house full of antiques thanks to their son.

After Bill was married in 1976, he realized his wife did not share his love of antiques and began his collection of coins which were small and easy to store. The couple began working with a church in South London, England in 1977, and Bill’s focus became West Indian Countermarks as a reflection
of his appreciation of that culture represented in so many of his church members. The years in England introduced Bill to Bob Lyall and to Baldwins who originally sold his collection at auction in 1998.

After returning to the states, Bill became interested in collecting other things such as Native American Art, after working for years with the Navajo in the American Southwest, but he kept coming back to coin collecting which he always loved. Sadly, Bill died August 19, 2021 with Covid-19. This sale represents his collection from 1998 to then. His family prays that the new owners of these coins and tokens will be blessed with enjoying the beauty, history, and culture that they represent as did their previous owner.