About Us

Forest City Collectibles - Storefront in London Ontario

Our History

In September of 1964, Keith opened up his store, Forest City Coins and Stamps, Ltd., on Dundas Street in the east end of London. He stayed there for nearly 2 years, and then made the move to Richmond Street, between King and Dundas, across from the old Simpson’s building. His business and clientele were starting to grow by this time and Keith was always busy running around, making a deal here and there.
In 1969, Ivan Greenham started to mount military medals for his war buddies. He did an excellent job and with that came an excellent reputation. This is where we find a story within a story. The Ivan Greenham Medal Dept. continued to grow and become well-known as did Forest City Coins. Even after Ivan’s passing in 1979, Keith kept the Medal Dept. running with the help of his wife, Jacqueline. Today, the Ivan Greenham Medal Dept. is one of Canada’s premier medal mounting firms, catering to all of Canada, and also the United States. In December of 1974, Keith moved his store once again, this time down the street to its current location, 354 Richmond Street, between King and York. He saw many good years go by, enjoyed good sales and made many great friends through his business.

Now, sometimes life throws you a curveball, Keith got his on December 1, 1989. He got a phone call at 2:00 in the morning; it was his son, Paul. He told Keith that his store was on fire and burning to the ground. Paul went on to tell him that he and the other tenants that lived above the store, all made it out safely. Keith quickly made his way down to the store to see one of his worst nightmares right before his eyes. Keith’s lifetime of work, his lifetime of collecting and accumulating, everything, was burning right there in front of him. It was a major blow indeed. What wasn’t burned by fire was destroyed by water. Many of the items that he had, like coins, melted and fused together, and the paper money and old sports cards, burned like newspaper. Thankfully, his customers, neighbours, friends and business community rallied together and held an auction to raise money for the tragedy. Keith never gave up and decided to rebuild the store from the ground up. He rented the building next to his, and moved what items did survive next door. Within a week, he was back in business. After 16 months had passed, his building had been rebuilt, and he was back in his old store buying, selling, trading, and accumulating much that had been lost.

 

Forest City Collectibles - Andrew Greenham holding Superman #1

Our Store Today

Today, now after over 58 years of ups and downs, Forest City Coins and Stamps Ltd., along with the help of the Ivan Greenham Medal Dept., are still going strong. Now is a good time to introduce myself, I am Keith’s son, Ivan’s grandson, Andrew Greenham. I am the third generation of Greenhams here, and I have been helping my dad with his shop for the past 40 years. I hope to enjoy the same success that my father has had, and I will strive to continue to keep Forest City Coins and Stamps Ltd. as one of London’s most interesting shops.

-Andy Greenham