Cal Wilson became a numismatic book dealer in 1980, joining Frank Katen and George Frederick Kolbe in that then-uncrowded field. How history will judge his eight yearsas a bibliopole depends a great deal on whether the historian was a customer (who universally loved him), or a consignor, (who sometimes complained of slow or inadequatesettlements). Either camp, however, had to admit that his career was consequential. Cal's second auction sale, on May 31, 1982, was a worthy successor to Kolbe'sbreakthrough 9th sale of the year before, and together, these auctions firmly established the market for numismatic literature in the United States.

Cal made another contribution to the numismatic literature hobby, a periodical for numismatic bibliophiles. It began life as Wilson's Numismatic Repository withvol 1, no. 1 in October of 1982, changed its name to just "The Repository" with vol 2, no 4 in July 1984, and ended with vol 5, no 4 in April of 1988. (a single issue was laterpublished online, dated October, 2001). The Repository was a lively little magazine, where many numismatic bibliophiles (myself included), first saw their names in print.While it did much to advance the hobby, Cal never took it overly seriously. The very first issue carried this tongue-in-cheek notice: "Not copyrighted. Unlike most otherpublications, any portion of "Wilson's Numismatic Repository" may be reprinted without permission. Besides, who would want to?"

The Numismatic Bibliomania Society also owes much to Cal's exertions on its behalf. In the years after its founding in 1979, the Society found it difficult to organizemeetings and to publish The Asylum on a regular schedule. Cal rallied West Coast members of the NBS, and they announced the organization's revival with a letter tothe membership dated October 4, 1982. He served as NBS President from 1983-84, and as a lead Board member for some years thereafter, and built a robust organization that metregularly and published its journal in a timely fashion.

A long, and mostly melancholy denouement consumed the last three decades of Cal's numismatic involvement. Financial difficulties shut down his numismatic literaturebusiness after his 18th sale in 1988, and old disputes over payments due and owing scuttled his attempt to rejoin the NBS in 1999. In 2002, Cal offered the records of theformative years of the NBS, gathered during the period of his leadership, to the highest bidder on eBay. That high bidder, thankfully, was Tom Sheehan, who then generously donatedthose records to the NBS Archives.

Cal was a warm, engaging and generous man who, at the top of his game, was as good as any leader this hobby has ever had. That he could not sustain this level of excellence fora lifetime does not diminish in any way the fact that he stepped up when when our hobby needed him most. This alone is enough to secure his place in the pantheon of numismaticliterature.

Pete Smith writes:

Dave Hirt writes:

George Kolbe writes:

Mr. Calvin Wilson, 74, passed away on Friday, October 12, 2018 at his residence. He was born August 18, 1944, in Florida to Calvin Otto Wilson, Sr. and Nevada Hall Wilson. Hewas employed by Crown Cork and Seal Manufacturing Company as their Production Planning Supervisor prior to his retirement. He was preceded in death by his parents.

Survivors include :
his Wife, Cindie Wilson

One Son:
Chris Wilson

Three Daughters:
Lara Rowlette,
Brittany Briscoe and
Rachel Bailey

One Brother:
Wayne Wilson

Five Grandchildren

To read the complete obituary, see:
Calvin Wilson AUGUST 18, 1944 ~ OCTOBER 12, 2018 (AGE 74)(https://www.peckfuneralhome.com/notices/Calvin-Wilson)

To read Wilson's Numismatic Repository on the Newman Numismatic Portal, see:
Wilson's Numismatic Repository (https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/book/535865)