There was a time when almost every active coin club seemed to have a show of its own. Dealers packed their cases, collectors travelled from town to town, club members volunteered at the door and friendships were formed across bourse tables. For many collectors, those local shows were where the hobby really came alive.
Welland was part of that Canadian collecting tradition. The Welland Coin Club was once an active part of the hobby in Niagara, and its shows were popular local events. But, like many clubs and shows across the country, eventually they disappeared. It has been many years since Welland has had a dedicated show of its own.
This Saturday, Oct. 3, we’re going to try to change that.
Canadian Coin News and CoinStampSupplies.com are presenting the first CCN Welland Coin Show at the Croatian National Home. For us, this is about more than filling a room with dealer tables. We want to help bring a collecting tradition back to our hometown – and perhaps introduce the hobby to people who have never experienced a show before.
And despite the name, a coin show has never been just about coins. Dealers will be bringing Canadian and worldwide coins, banknotes, tokens, medals, gold, silver and other numismatic material, spanning different periods, interests and budgets. That variety has always been part of the appeal of these shows and of the hobby itself.
The hobby needs the major conventions and national organizations, but it also needs smaller community shows and clubs. These are the places where someone can walk through the door with a handful of coins or banknotes inherited from a grandparent and have their first conversation with a knowledgeable dealer. They are where beginning collectors can see material they may previously have encountered only online, and where longtime collectors can spend a Saturday talking about the hobby with people who share their enthusiasm.
There is still something about a show that the Internet simply cannot duplicate. You can hold a coin, token or medal in your hand, examine a banknote up close, compare pieces, ask questions and talk directly with the person on the other side of the table. Just as importantly, collectors, dealers and club members get a chance to reconnect face to face.
We’re encouraged by the response to our first Welland show. About 20 dealers are joining us, bringing material from Canada and around the world. They will also be there to meet people who have collections, accumulations or individual pieces they would like to sell, have appraised or simply learn more about.
Ultimately, whether local shows survive comes down to something very simple: people have to come through the doors. Dealers need collectors. Collectors need dealers. Clubs need members and volunteers. And the hobby needs places where all of them can meet.
So we hope collectors and coin club members from across Ontario and beyond will make the trip to Welland on Saturday. Come looking for the next addition to your collection, bring something you’d like a dealer to look at, catch up with old friends or simply spend a few hours surrounded by numismatic material and people who enjoy the hobby as much as you do.
We don’t know yet what the future holds for the Welland Coin Show. That is part of what makes Saturday exciting. If collectors support it, perhaps we can once again make a coin show an annual tradition in Welland.
And wouldn’t that be something worth bringing back?
Welland Coin Show
Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026 • 9 a.m.-3 p.m.
Croatian National Home, 6 Broadway Ave., Welland
Admission $5 • Free parking