United States Mint | mint | www.metalmarket.eu

History of creation

United States Mint can boast a really long history, as its origins date back to the late 18th century. The official establishment of the mint took place on April 2, 1792, as a consequence of the passing of the Monetary Act by Congress. Coinage Act). Philadelphia, which was then the nation's capital, was chosen as its headquarters. A three-story building was quickly erected on two lots on Arch Street, which, interestingly enough, was the first federal building erected under the Constitution and was also the tallest building in all of Philadelphia at the time.

Production began almost immediately and included all denominations of coins, as detailed in the Monetary Law. Copper was used to mint half cents and dimes, silver was used to mint half dimes, dimes, quarters, half dollars and dollars. In turn, gold was used to mint different variants of the eagle - quarter eagle ($2.5), half eagle ($5) and eagle ($10).

The early 19th century was the time of the gold rush - first in North Carolina and then in Georgia. It soon became apparent that the mint's production capacity was insufficient, so in 1835 Congress decided to establish its 3 field branches - in Charlotte, North Carolina; Dahlonega, Georgia; and New Orleans, Louisiana. The first two focused on melting gold supplied by miners into gold coins. The New Orleans branch, in turn, supported the main production facility in minting gold and silver coins to keep up with the needs of a rapidly expanding America.

In the ensuing years and in response to gold fevers breaking out in the rest of the country, Congress established more mint branches - m. in. in 1854 in San Francisco, in 1858 in Denver, Colorado or in 1864 in The Dalles City, Oregon. A little later, in 1936, a state depository was opened at Fort Knox, and in 1938 a silver depository was opened at West Point. Currently, United States Mint has four production facilities in Philadelphia, San Francisco, West Point and Denver, as well as a precious metals depository in Fort Knox.

Curiosity

In the early stages of development, the Philadelphia plant relied on the power of horses, oxen and people. The breakthrough moment came in 1836, when a steam press began to be used to produce coins. Over the years, further improvements were made so that the Philadelphia mint is still recognized today as the largest mint in the world. Of course, it is not located in its historic headquarters - it now occupies the fourth building in its long history. However, the current occupied building still holds the key to the historic headquarters, as well as the chair on which George Washington sat during one of his visits.

Production volume

United States Mint is one of the largest, if not the largest, mint in the world, so it is reasonable to assume that its production capacity is enormous. Last year alone, the mint produced just under 14.5 billion circulation coins. While this result is truly impressive, it is worth noting that the mint also mints bullion and collector coins. Among them are also the iconic coins that for years have been among the top coins most favored by investors around the world.

We are talking, for example, about the American Eagle, which is minted in different size versions and from several different bullions. Statistics for the first nine months of 2022 show more than 1.5 million gold coins sold, 13.5 million silver coins and 80,000 platinum coins.

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