Howard Johnson Stock Certificate 1972 – Consecutive Pair, 100 Shares

📸 Please Note: This listing is for the exact pair of certificates shown in the photographs.

Two consecutive cancelled Howard Johnson Company certificates, numbers N196911 and N196912, each for 100 shares and dated 22 May 1972. The bright orange design shows the chain's Simple Simon and the Pieman logo and the facsimile signature of Howard B. Johnson.

⚡ Extreme Index: 6.4 / 10
Why it's extreme: Two consecutive certificates of the orange-roof restaurant chain, with the Simple Simon and the Pieman logo.

• History & drama (30%): 7.5/10
• Scarcity (25%): 4.5/10 (our estimate; Numista does not rate stock certificates)
• Wow factor (20%): 7.5/10
• Age (15%): 5.5/10
• Condition (10%): 7/10

The Extreme Index is Extreme Banknotes' own collector score based on history, scarcity, curiosity, age and condition — it is not a valuation or investment rating.

📦 Included Certificates:

1. 22 May 1972 Howard Johnson Company – 100 shares of common stock, no. N196911

2. 22 May 1972 Howard Johnson Company – 100 shares of common stock, no. N196912 (consecutive)

📖 History and Significance:
Howard Deering Johnson opened a drugstore soda fountain in Quincy, Massachusetts, in 1925, became famous for his 28 flavours of ice cream and opened the first Howard Johnson's restaurant in 1929. Its orange roofs became a landmark of American highways, and the first Howard Johnson's motor lodge followed in 1954. The company went public in 1961, and his son Howard B. Johnson ran it from 1959. By 1975 there were more than 1,000 restaurants and over 500 motor lodges, before the British Imperial Group bought the company in 1979. The last Howard Johnson's restaurant closed in 2022, but the name lives on as a Wyndham hotel brand.

🎨 Design Details:
Front: orange "100 Shares" border and an engraved seated woman holding a branch, flanked by two panels with the Simple Simon and the Pieman logo and a lamplighter scene; "Howard Johnson Company" in its famous lettering, the Maryland corporate seal dated 1961 and the facsimile signature of Howard B. Johnson as President.
Back: the transfer form, signed and stamped for the transfer, with "CUST" and "OTW-2" transfer stamps dated 7 December 1972.

🔍 Collector Features:

• Type: Cancelled (redeemed) common stock certificate
• Company: Howard Johnson Company
• Incorporated: State of Maryland
• Date: 22 May 1972
• Shares: 100 shares
• Colour: Orange
• Certificate numbers: N196911 and N196912 (consecutive)
• Signed (facsimile): Howard B. Johnson, President
• CUSIP: 442672 10 1
• Printer: Security-Columbian Banknote Company

✅ Condition Guide:
XF (Extremely Fine) / Cancelled. An unfolded certificate with crisp paper and sharp engraving. Like every redeemed certificate it was cancelled by the transfer agent, so it shows punch-hole cancellations and transfer stamps, mainly on the back.

Cancelled certificates are collectibles only. They carry no ownership rights and have no value as shares.