2024 $1 Cobb & Co - Centenary of the Last Coach Service in Australia Uncirculated Coin in RAM Card

The last ever Cobb & Co coach service ended its final journey 100 years ago this year, leaving the name Cobb & Co firmly entrenched in Australian folklore.

Founded in Victoria in 1853 at the height of the gold rushes, this horse-drawn coach service spread across Eastern Australia, contributing much to opening up the inland to travelers and new settlers.

At the height of the 1850's Victorian gold rush, four newly arrived Americans, Freeman Cobb and three colleagues, saw the opportunity to launch a transport business, using horse-drawn carriages like those in the American west. From that first journey in 1853, Cobb & Co coach routes crisscrossed Eastern Australia, establishing a reputation for speed and reliability.

Although railways progressively connected major towns, Cobb & Co instead linked more distant communities. Horses needed to be changed every 15-25 kilometres at a network of waystations, often inns, directly contributing to the opening of rural Australia. Cob & Co's final journey came on 14 August 1924, ending the era of horse-drawn transport in Australia. The reason - the advent of reliable motor vehicles.

That last every journey, 65 kilometres from Surat to Yuleba in southern Queensland, is commemorated with the Royal Australian Mint's stunning new $1 collector coin.

The coin's reverse features a stylised scene of a Cobb & Co Coach and passengers as they are about to reach a station, designed by A. Ball.

Coin's obverse features the obverse of His Majesty King Charles III designed by Daniel Thorne.

Each coin is encapsulated in a presentation card and issued as Australian Legal tender.

Australian Legal Tender

Denomination :    $1

Quality :              Uncirculated

Metal :                 Aluminum Bronze

Weight :               9 gms

Diameter :           25 mm

Mintage :             37,500

Certificate of Authenticity : Royal Australian Mint Packaging