10 Bantam Chickens for One Silver Coin: The Best Craigslist Trade I Ever Made

The Craigslist ad was short: baby Bantam chickens, three hens, seven chicks. The flock was attacking the new hens. Looking for a good home. Barter or trade.

I emailed and offered a pure silver coin — spot price around nineteen dollars at the time. He agreed on the spot and threw in two dozen eggs for good measure.

Ten chickens and two dozen eggs for one silver coin. That's the barter economy of southern Idaho in action.

What Bantam Chickens Actually Are

Stop what you're doing if you've never dealt with Bantams — these are miniature chickens, and they are something else entirely.

I brought them home in a cardboard box and couldn't even see the chicks underneath the hens. The moment I set the box down, all three broody hens had piled on top of the babies like a feathered fortress. You could not have separated them with a crowbar.

They're fiercely protective, famously broody, and I immediately started experimenting with having them sit on my Barred Rock and Wyandotte eggs as natural incubators.

The CraigsList-and-Silver Economy of Twin Falls County

Here's the thing about Twin Falls County and Magic Valley in general: the informal trade economy is alive and thriving. Silver coins, produce swaps, labor exchanges, equipment loans — people here know how to do business with each other outside of cash, and they're proud of it.

This is part of what makes homesteading in southern Idaho so uniquely affordable. The community itself is a resource.

Ready to Be Part of This Community?

I'm Dr. Ron Jones, a Magic Valley real estate agent and homesteader who has made trades like this more times than I can count. Let me help you find a property where this kind of life is possible.

Dr. Ron Jones | Rim & River Real Estate | rimandriver.com | 208-712-8386