Biele Business with the American Numismatic
Society
Below
is an envelope from 1893 mailed by the C.F. & E. Biele company to the
American Numismatic and Archeological Society in New York (now known as
the American Numismatic Society).
The envelope was bought at auction and was empty so the exact nature of
the correspondence is unknown. Presumably it had to do with showcases for the
Society's coin collections.
The
librarian at the Society stated "Unfortunately, I do not find any
mention of the Biele family or correspondence relating to the Society’s
purchase of showcases from them, in our Library holdings. All of our
existing exhibit cases date from about 1950 or later. There is also no
mention of the Biele cases in the published history of the Society.
"
A recent follow up with the archivist at the ANS also proved
unfruitful.
I've had a chance to review our files. Unfortunately, I have not been
able to find any references to your family's firm. Initially, I reviewed
our limited correspondence files from 1892-93 but I could not find any
relevant documentation. I also reviewed the files related to the 1908
construction of our first headquarters, but also could not find
anything. (Before ca. 1908, the ANS simply rented office space.)
It is always possible that your family's firm assisted the ANS with a
major exhibition in April of 1893 related to the Columbian Exposition;
however, that's pure speculation on my part, unfortunately.While
not not yielding any new information, once again I am grateful for the
assistance of the ANS staff.
