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AUCTION
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THE CANDACE D. KAGIN COLLECTION OF HOBO NICKELS
THE CANDACE D. KAGIN COLLECTION OF HOBO NICKELS
Auction Currency
USD
Auction Location
1550 Tiburon Blvd. Suite G201
,
Tiburon
,
California
,
94920
,
United States
In Person Preview
auctions.kagins.com
Auction Details
KAGIN’S AUCTIONS OFFERS THE CANDACE D. KAGIN COLLECTION OF HOBO NICKELS
Billed as the largest and finest collection of Hobo Nickels ever assembled and offered for sale, the Candace D. Kagin collection consists of over 600 individual coins. They include over 100 ‘Bo’s” and “Bert’s”, unnamed carvers, Modern carvers, privately held Hobo nickels, and ancillary items.
The offering will take place over three auctions commencing with approximately 200 lots on September 28, 2026. All auction’s will be sold live on-line only. A comprehensive reference work including all the lots as well as some 40 coins sold by Stacks Bowers Galleries, is planned after all the sales are concluded sometime in 2027.
5% of the hammer price will be donated to The Original Hobo Nickel Society (OHNS).
Candace began collecting Hobo Nickels in 2005 at the FUN convention in Orlando. It was her first time at a coin convention where she overheard a dealer explaining that the nickel in his case was hand carved by a ‘hobo’. Her curiosity was peaked. At the annual OHNS auction Kagin set a world record price for her purchase of a carving of a woman called “Monique”.
Several years later she purchased what was believed to be the largest collection of Hobo nickels from Salt Lake City dealer Bob Campbell. Several years and a few hundred coins later, Candace added to the collection which now contains over 600 coins.
Born from ingenuity and necessity, the Hobo Nickel is a small-denomination coin—most often the American Buffalo nickel—hand-carved by itinerant artists, or “hobos,” during the early twentieth century. With crude tools and creative vision, these artists transformed ordinary coins into portraits, whimsical scenes, or abstract designs, sometimes reflecting their own journeys or the culture of the time.
The tradition began in earnest around the 1920s, coinciding with the Great Depression, when economic hardship forced many to travel the rails in search of work. The coins acted not only as possible currency but as tokens of gratitude, mementos, or barter items exchanged for food, shelter, or simple companionship. Each Hobo Nickel is thus a relic of survival, storytelling, and artistic improvisation
These coins capture moments of resilience and creativity during some of America’s most challenging years. They serve as everyday objects transformed by extraordinary skill, a reminder that art can flourish even in the most austere circumstances.
Hobo Nickels also bridge worlds—between art and commerce, anonymity and fame, poverty and ingenuity. The artists themselves often worked in obscurity, yet their creations live on, admired and studied by collectors like Candace and by historians seeking to understand the spirit of an era.
When assembling her collection, Candace paid close attention to provenance, ensuring that each piece is properly authenticated as much as it could be. She treasures the coins with known stories—a nickel carved by a train-hopping artist in the 1930s, another exchanged for a hot meal at a rural depot, or pieces crafted by contemporary carvers who honor the tradition.
2026 Sep 08
16:00
UTC-07:00 : PDT/MST
Session 1
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1201 -
Artist: Unknown.
Kagin's, Inc
Another Dapper Dan Dandy in a derby dangling a cigarette from his mouth. His shapely ear is bordered by short stylish hair behind and a sideburn in fr
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Start Price : 350.00
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1202 -
Artist: “Flat Nose.”
Kagin's, Inc
Superior skills went into the creation of our otherwise standardized derby-beard-jacket style hobo friend. The pounded hat details and hatband effect
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Start Price : 900.00
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1203 -
Artist: “Peanut Ear.”
Kagin's, Inc
A tightly fitting derby with a fancy hatband and a pointed shirt collar are the trappings of this hairy fellow with full facial and head hair done wit
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Start Price : 1,250.00
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1204 -
Artist: “Tom Thumb.”
Kagin's, Inc
An unusually detailed gent makes his appearance on this spectacular carving. His derby is alive with near-dizzying half circles, a fancy hatband with
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Start Price : 450.00
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1205 -
Artist: Unknown.
Kagin's, Inc
An artistic study in minimalist carving. The short-brimmed derby and collar are stark and utilitarian in appearance, while his hair and facial adornme
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Start Price : 275.00
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1206 -
Exceptional “Tortoise Shell” Hobo Artist: “K. Pedersen.”
Kagin's, Inc
An exceptional carving at every turn. This fellow’s derby has a hammered tortoise-shell appearance with a stylishly wide hatband and a big di
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Start Price : 520.00
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1207 -
Artist: Unknown.
Kagin's, Inc
Texture, texture everywhere from chapeau to collar and from hair to facial hair. His small but neatly done ear overlaps his hat brim. EF reverse, some
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Start Price : 330.00
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1208 -
Artist: Unknown.
Kagin's, Inc
A modest derby with a fancy bow, hat band, and broad brim sits atop a naked nape but a face full of finely dotted hair. His ear is remarkably life-lik
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Start Price : 250.00
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1209 -
Artist: Unknown
Kagin's, Inc
The finely shaped derby has a broad hat band and a long, curved brim. The cross-thatching around the hat resembles palm tree fronds, and his nape is c
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Start Price : 175.00
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1210 -
Artist: Unknown.
Kagin's, Inc
Almost messianic in appearance, this hook-nosed fellow’s tightly fitting cap has a fancy and narrow beaded hat brim. His nape and facial hair
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Start Price : 275.00
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1211 -
Artist: Unknown.
Kagin's, Inc
A slightly rumpled fedora with a stingy brim, a slim hat band, and a fancy high collar and neat jacket lapel separates the enormous bush of stippled h
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Start Price : 125.00
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1212 -
Artist: “Sam Francisco (Ethnic Eddie).”
Kagin's, Inc
Aye, an’ it’s top of the mornin’ to ya! Our perky little Leprechaun friend sports a jaunty little fedora with a wildly upwa
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Start Price : 1,200.00
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1213 -
Artist: “Super Ear.”
Kagin's, Inc
The first impression is that of a Shakespearean bard, but alas, he’s but an off-duty clown. The painted lips, the rouge on his cheek, and the
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Start Price : 1,500.00
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1214 -
He’s One Jocular Fella Artist: “K. Pedersen.”
Kagin's, Inc
This guy is nearly delirious with happiness if his toothy grin is any indication. Comically depicted with a broadly grinning mouth blessed with huge h
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Start Price : 780.00
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1215 -
Artist: Unknown.
Kagin's, Inc
Our bearded buddy is as sparsely done as a Hobo nickel can be to our eyes. Basic lines denote the hat and jacket ensemble, and the hair on his head an
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Start Price : 410.00
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1216 -
Artist: Unknown.
Kagin's, Inc
Artfully engraved with a fine hat with some dents, a wide vertically striped hat band and a stingy curved brim that points downward, and his jacket an
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Start Price : 250.00
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1217 -
Artist: “K. Pedersen.”
Kagin's, Inc
Maybe there’s a bit of Mephistopheles in this guy’s profile, but you can’t top his taste in clothes! His tortoise shell hat
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Start Price : 600.00
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1218 -
Artist: “Rough Beard.”
Kagin's, Inc
If we didn’t know any better, we’d think this guy was wearing a snakeskin hat with matching hat band and thin brim! His collar and j
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Start Price : 775.00
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1219 -
Artist: “Brazzell.”
Kagin's, Inc
Somewhat military-like in appearance, this austere portrait is extremely bold in the face of its simplicity. Despite the Baldy-bean appearance, our la
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Start Price : 180.00
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1220 -
Artist: “K. Pedersen.”
Kagin's, Inc
An artistically sound Hobo nickel by any standards. The finely shaped and broad-brimmed derby features two airholes on the hat band. Shirt ensemble ni
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Start Price : 500.00
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1221 -
Artist: “Brazzell.”
Kagin's, Inc
Perhaps the waviest hair in Hobo nickel-dom. The bold lines of the head and facial hair and an unusual but well-defined ear sit serenely between his h
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Start Price : 155.00
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1222 -
Artist: Unknown.
Kagin's, Inc
A nicely fitted derby with a pleasing geometrical pattern and a downward sweeping brim sits atop this gent’s head. His slightly large figure-
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Start Price : 275.00
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1223 -
Artist: Unknown.
Kagin's, Inc
Say, buddy, you got a light? Lots of bushy head and facial hair sit above his neat shirt collar and adjoining jacket collar, and the derby on his head
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Start Price : 575.00
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1224 -
The Late-Night Lurker Artist: “No Neck.”
Kagin's, Inc
We looked and looked and came up with the same scenario time and time again -- this fellow is lurking in the dark evening hours, maybe on a lightless
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Start Price : 375.00
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1225 -
Artist: “Ich Kibible.”
Kagin's, Inc
Boldly signed “ICH KIBIBLE” in block letters above our grinning friend, this toothy fellow looks like a Circus Barker to our eyes, s
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Start Price : 975.00
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1226 -
Certified Genuine Hobo Nickel Bill Fivaz Verification Artist: “Franken Bo.”
Kagin's, Inc
About as nicely and precisely done as we’ve seen. The nearly mandatory derby-hat band-jacket-shirt regalia is richly carved with the shading
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Start Price : 1,020.00
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1227 -
“Fantasia” Artist: “Shamey.”
Kagin's, Inc
“Pink elephants on parade…” Well, you can almost imgine them while Mr. Mickey Mouse himself performs his famous “M
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Start Price : 800.00
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1228 -
Artist: Unknown.
Kagin's, Inc
Somewhat standard in the hat and clothing area, but the hair is a series of short horizontal dashes pushed in an unusual and attractive array, and the
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Start Price : 450.00
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1229 -
Artist: Unknown.
Kagin's, Inc
A step beyond the usual derby and beard routine, this piece displays a well-loved derby with a few dents, a marvelous hat band with deep V-like vertic
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Start Price : 400.00
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1230 -
Artist: “Wabon Edding.”
Kagin's, Inc
His Sherlock Holmesian derby with the oversized fancy bow is, fortunately, a fashion that never quite caught on. Military style jacket with large butt
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Start Price : 950.00
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1231 -
Artist: Unknown.
Kagin's, Inc
A beauty if for nothing else than its incredible crudeness and amateur appearance. In our eyes, it’s a real slice of Americana! From derby, h
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Start Price : 125.00
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1232 -
Look! Up in the Sky… Artist: “K. Pedersen."
Kagin's, Inc
Another signed masterpiece from the talented mind and hands of K. Pedersen. We’re not sure what our Hobo friend sees – a bird, a pla
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Start Price : 400.00
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1233 -
Artist: “K. Pedersen."
Kagin's, Inc
It’s a smiley little chap in a floppy little cap with a wide hat band and a broad floppy brim. His hair, ear, and shoulder details are promin
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Start Price : 550.00
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1234 -
Artist: “K. Pedersen."
Kagin's, Inc
If you’re going out later tonight, just beware of the vampire’s bite! Our sharp-toothed friend in the deeply shaded backdrop looks a
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Start Price : 475.00
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1235 -
Artist: “Mike Pezak.”
Kagin's, Inc
Ahoy there, matey, Polly does want a cracker! An amazingly detailed buccaneer and his favorite familiar offer a textured display of patience and art,
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Start Price : 475.00
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1236 -
Artist: “Peanut Ear.”
Kagin's, Inc
Typical but atypical at the same time, a frequently found contradiction in the artform. All pertinent details – hat, hair, collar, et al
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Start Price : 1,200.00
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