Since attending my first American Numismatic Association (ANA) anniversary convention in Atlanta in 1961, there is only one that I’ve missed. That lone exception was in 1970 at St. Louis. This year’s 132nd anniversary renewal opportunity in Pittsburgh, Pa., was not an exception. Thus, my uninterrupted run now stands at 52, the convention scheduled for 2020 having been cancelled as a consequence of the COVID pandemic.
The ANA’s organizing convention was hosted in Chicago on Oct. 7, 1891, at the Commercial Hotel. The first anniversary convention called for Niagara Falls, N.Y., on Aug. 16-17, 1892, but was abruptly postponed to Oct. 1 in Pittsburgh. The city has subsequently hosted ANA anniversary conventions in 1935, 1989 and 2004, along with National Money Show events in 2011 and 2019, and had also been selected as the site for that cancelled 2020 gathering. The old Steel City was recently picked for a ninth time, in 2026, for its 135th anniversary gathering. My leisurely travels to Pittsburgh got under way with a Sunday morning drive to the Appleton airport to catch the 10:49 a.m. United Express flight to O’Hare. With a two-hour connection to the 2:21 p.m. United departure to Pittsburgh, I caught a chili and salad lunch at the Chili’s in the “B” concourse.
The flight to Pittsburgh arrived at 4:48 p.m., about five minutes ahead of schedule, despite the fact it was vectored around some storm centers along the way. Having claimed my suitcase and hailed a taxi, it was about 5:45 p.m. when I arrived at the Westin Convention Center hotel.
There, the first familiar faces encountered as I headed to claim
