These years cover the eras of Large Cents, Bust coinage, and the Liberty Seated coinage; all collecting interests of mine.
This is my latest web project; bringing more numismatic information to the web. These reports are in the public domain; my copyright applies to the formatting and presentation structure. So, does that mean you can strip out the HTML tags and do as you will with what remains? I cannot say; I am not a lawyer, so I do not give out legal advice.
My library contains the reports for the following years, and I wish to acquire the reports from the years not listed.
Key
In the following table, one row contains the information on each item:
| The following reports are for the listed calendar year. | ||
| 1790 | III.1.10 | A report from the Secretary of State, Thomas Jefferson, to the House, detailing his objections to the overseas minting of U.S. coins. In response to a private British proposal to Congress to mint copper coins. |
| 1791 | III.1.24 | A report from the Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton, to the House, detailing the results of his inquirires and reflections on the establishment of a mint. Also includes some papers, from various sources, that were not communicated to the House by Mr. Hamilton. |
| 1793 | III.1.42 | A brief report from the Director of the Mint, David Rittenhouse, to the Secretary of State, Thomas Jefferson, who relayed it to the House. The results of the assays of locally available silver and gold coins of France, England, Spain, and Portugal. |
| 1793 | III.1.56 | A report from the Secretary of State, Thomas Jefferson, to President Washington who relayed it to the Senate. Suitable chief mint employees can barely be found; coinage of the precious metals has not commenced because they cannot provide the required bond. An important position, handling as much precious metal as the coiner, has been created at the mint without authorization by Congress. |
| 1794 | III.1.60 | A short note from Mint Director David Rittenhouse, showing how the mint can make a profit from making money. Rittenhouse adds his comments to a note, from the coiner, on producing the copper coinage. |
| 1794 | III.1.71 | A note from mint director David Rittenhouse to Secretary of State Edmund Randolph, finally being relayed to the Senate by President Washington. A beginning has been made in coining the precious metals, but a parcel of blank dollars awaits a more powerful press to coin them. The large quantity of copper will be processed so as not to interfere with the silver coinage. |
| 1795 | III.1.81 | A report from the committee tasked with examining the current state of the mint and reporting on further measures. Staff responsibilities and mint procedures are some of the addressed areas. |
| 1795 | III.1.84 | The Secretary of State, Thomas Pickering, relays reports from two mint Directors. The fineness of the silver coinage is not as authorized by Congress. Coinage of silver and gold is halted due to the transition between Directors and the death of the assayer. |
| 1796 | A report from mint director Elias Boudinot to President Washington, via Secretary of State Timothy Pickering, who relayed it to Congress at the President’s direction. The mint learns the minting business through experience. A Melter and Refiner is added to the staff to process the large amounts of deposited bullion of nonstandard fineness. The requirement that depositors be paid in coin struck from that depositor’s bullion makes for costly and inefficient procedures. The pieces set aside for the assay commission are taken from the amount due the depositors, so the depositors complain. | |
| 1797 | III.1.111 | A report from the committee tasked with examining the changes suggested in the mint director’s 1796 report. They recommend appropriating money to buy silver and gold for coinage; and another amount to cover wastage in coining silver and gold, along with a loss of silver during an accident. |
| 1797 | III.1.117 | A report from the committee tasked with examining the act regulating foreign coins. It appears that little US silver coinage circulates distant from the mint, and foreign coins still are heavily used. They recommend that the period for accepting foreign silver and gold coins be extended beyond the previous limit. A Treasury circular of November, 1797 is attached — silver French crowns will be accepted beyond the lawful period, and information on which coins are current locally is requested. |
| 1797 | III.1.118 | A report from the mint Director, responding to an order from the House, stating the quantities of silver and gold coins produced since the report of about a year earlier. The individual deposits of silver and gold are listed by date, and give the depostor name, bullion weight, value, and type of deposited items. The mint works with local banks to receive deposits that are small enough to process quickly. |
| 1797 | A report from the mint Director, following the above mid-December report by less than two months. Perhaps that is why this report was not included in American State Papers. Bob Julian found this report in a Correspondence Book of the Treasury Department. The amount of gold, silver, and copper coins produced in 1797 is given, along with the total value since the Mint opened. The number of workmen was reduced due to the small amout of silver bullion deposited, but the anticipated supply in 1798 justifies an increase in the staff. The horses can provided power for no more than two hours at a time, and they get in the way; a steam engine would supercede the horses, and it could also power some equipment that now is manually powered. The price of the engine would be saved in two or three years. | |
| 1798 | III.1.121 | A report from the Secretary of the Treasury, Oliver Wolcott. Although the mint director could receive, from the Bank of the United States, foreign silver and gold coins for recoinage into coins of the United States, appropriate foreign silver coins were not available, and the foreign gold coins had more value in foreign commerce. Since the proclamation of the President, foreign silver coins other than Spanish dollars and their parts now are available for the mint at the Bank. |
| 1798 | III.1.134 | A report from the Committee of Claims, regarding a petition by John Vaughn. For most of 1795, the mint produced silver coins containing more silver than the law authorized. A depositor of silver bullion thereby received fewer coins than expected, even though the coins cointained the deposited amount of silver. The petitioner lost more than $2,000 on a deposit of more than 230,000 ounces of silver, and the committee feel this claim has merit. |
| 1799 | III.1.140 | A report from mint director Elias Boudinot to President Adams, who relayed it to Congress. The number of each denomination minted in 1798 is given; the value of the 1798 coins nearly double the value in any preceding year. The unprotected state of the mint should be reconsidered in light of the scheme, detected last summer, for robbing the mint. |
| 1799 | III.1.141 | A letter from the Comptroller of the Treasury, accompanying the first of the required reports on the finances of the mint. This report covers from the establishment of the mint to the present, and future reports will be issued annually. |
| 1799 | III.1.144 | A report from mint director Elias Boudinot to President Adams, who relayed it to Congress. The number of each denomination minted in 1799 is given, along with the value of gold, silver, and copper pieces coined since start of operations. One press can coin 14,000 cents each day, if the planchettes are available. The upcoming move of all government offices to the new seat of government includes the Mint; but complications to Mint operations are anticipated. With no law preventing the private melting of gold and silver coins, that practice is feared to become common. |
| 1800 | III.1.148 | A report from the Senate committee that reviewed the recent report from the mint. In light of the large expense of the mint relative to the small amount of its coinage since its founding seven years ago, the required move of the mint to the seat of government provides a good opportunity to close the mint, use foreign silver and gold coins as legal tender, and contract out the manufacture of cents and half cents. |
| 1800 | III.1.156 | A report from mint director Elias Boudinot to President Adams, who relayed it to Congress. The number of each denomination minted in 1800 is given, along with the profit on striking copper pieces in 1800 and the total of copper pieces coined since the start of operations. The great rise in the price of copper limited the number of copper pieces struck. The move of all government offices to the new seat of government means that the named officers will not be available at the mint for the upcoming annual assay inspection. The mint assayer has determined that the Spanish milled doubloons, previously made a legal tender at about eighty-seven cents per pennyweight, contain less than eighty-five cents of gold per pennyweight. |
| 1801 | III.1.161 | A report from mint director Elias Boudinot to President Adams, who relayed it to Congress. The required assay of reserved pieces was not performed because none of the government officials attended — the depositors demand their property, and the Mint Director awaits instruction from the President on that matter as well as on the impending expiration of the authorization of the Mint. |
| 1801 | III.1.172 | A report from mint director Elias Boudinot to President Jefferson, who relayed it to Congress. The number of each denomination minted in 1801 is given, and it is noted that most of the used gold was deposited as bullion or lumps. As mentioned in past reports, the director has not seen the notice, as required by law after more than $50,000 of the cents and half cents have been deposited at the Treasury, that no other copper coins are current; presently, more than $93,000 of the copper coins have been deposited. |
| 1802 | III.1.180 | A report from Comptroller of the Treasury John Steele to Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin, who relayed it to the House. The required statements cover more than two years of appropriations, expenditures, and other operations of the Mint; these statements were absent from the last two annual reports by the Mint Director. |
| 1802 | III.1.182 | While Congress considers abolishing the mint, Treasury Secretary Gallatin forwards to the House two letters recently received from the mint director, and one letter received from mint engraver Robert Scot. An order for 20 to 25 tons of copper planchettes was placed in England last fall, with delivery this spring, and to be coined during the summer if the mint continues. The requested listing of the mint’s property is provided — due to its specialized nature, some property might not bring even half its value at public auction. Should the mint be retained: consider selling the current small lots in the heart of the city and buying an advantageous lot in a less public place, and the machinery should be powered by steam instead of horses. Some private offers of producing the national coinage are made. |
| 1802 | A short letter from mint director Elias Boudinot to President Jefferson, who relayed it to Congress. With the newspapers carrying reports of proposed legislation to close the Mint, Director Boudinot puts in a request for some consideration for the workers. | |
| 1802 | III.2.191 | A short report from mint director Elias Boudinot to President Jefferson, who relayed it to Congress. Fifteen thousand cents are struck each day, drawing from the near twenty-four tons of copper planchettes on hand. If the mint will not be abolished as discussed in the past Congress, at least five hundred dollars will be needed to purchase two additional horses and for repairs to the present machinery. |
| 1802 | III.2.198 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Duvall to Treasury Secretary Gallatin who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1803 | III.2.211 | A short report from mint director Elias Boudinot to President Jefferson, who relayed it to Congress. Coin production is way down, due to diminished deposits; production costs decline slightly. |
| 1803 | III.2.219 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Duvall to Treasury Secretary Gallatin who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1804 | III.2.228 | A short report from mint director Elias Boudinot to President Jefferson, who relayed it to Congress. About eleven thousand dollars of the gold coinage is produced from gold found in one county of North Carolina; more gold from that area is expected. The coinage of cents is less profitable due to the increased price of copper in Europe. |
| 1804 | III.2.233 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Duvall to Treasury Secretary Gallatin who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1805 | III.2.239 | A short report from mint director Robert Patterson to President Jefferson, who relayed it to Congress. The large number of struck small silver pieces is in response to depositors; it adds to the supply of small change both directly and indirectly by preventing the exportation of the silver coinage. |
| 1806 | III.2.250 | A short report from a House committee on a Senate bill regarding foreign coins as legal tender. Instead of removing legal tender status from the Spanish milled dollar as the Senate wishes, the House committee finds that the domestic coinage is insufficient for domestic commerce and therefore Spanish milled dollars as well as other foreign coins should be made a legal tender. |
| 1805 | III.2.252 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Duvall to Treasury Secretary Gallatin who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1806 | III.2.261 | A short report from mint director Robert Patterson to President Jefferson, who relayed it to Congress. The value of the precious metal coinage is double the average annual value from the first ten years of production. Copper coinage is small due to a new screw and other repairs to the cent press. |
| 1806 | III.2.266 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Duvall to Treasury Secretary Gallatin who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1807 | III.2.274 | A short report from mint director Robert Patterson to President Jefferson, who relayed it to Congress. Mint production is higher than in any former year, with more than two million pieces struck, having a face value of more than one million dollars. |
| 1807 | III.2.275 | An assay of foreign coins, from mint director Robert Patterson to Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin, who relayed it to Congress. Congress’ act of the 10th of April, 1806 fixed the values of certain foreign coins in common use; this report shows that some coins are correctly valued, some coins are slightly over valued, and others are considerably over valued. |
| 1807 | III.2.284 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Duvall to Treasury Secretary Gallatin who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1808 | III.2.288 | A short report from mint director Robert Patterson to President Jefferson, who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1808 | III.2.299 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Duvall to Treasury Secretary Gallatin who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1809 | III.2.306 | An assay of foreign coins, from mint director Robert Patterson to Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin, who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1809 | III.2.309 | A short report from mint director Robert Patterson to President Madison, who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1809 | III.2.318 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Duvall to Treasury Secretary Gallatin who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1810 | III.2.330 | An assay of foreign coins, from mint director Robert Patterson to Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin, who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1810 | III.2.331 | A House committee’s opinion on the legal tender status of certain foreign coins, based upon the latest assay results from Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin. Because the U.S. mint is not capable of satisfying the domestic coinage needs, certain foreign gold and silver coins should be granted legal tender status at specified rates for only three years; afterwards, Spanish milled dollars (and its parts) should be the only foreign coinage with legal tender status. Although the prior rate for Spanish gold coins was four per cent too high, the committee feels no relief should be provided to the current holders of Spanish gold coins when a corrected rate is established. |
| 1810 | III.2.332 | A short report from mint director Robert Patterson to President Madison, who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1810 | III.2.350 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Duvall to Treasury Secretary Gallatin who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1811 | III.2.335 | A report from Treasury Secretary Gallatin, as requested by the House, detailing the production of the mint from its establishment through the end of 1809; includes comments regarding the expense in refining bullion of non-standard fineness, the profit on the copper coinage, and other mint procedures. |
| 1811 | III.2.354 | An assay of foreign coins, from mint director Robert Patterson to Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin, who relayed it to Congress. Some verification needed. |
| 1811 | III.2.361 | A short report from mint director Robert Patterson to President Madison, who relayed it to Congress. Following the closing of the Bank of the United States, an adequate supply of bullion for coinage now is provided by other banks in Philadelphia. |
| 1811 | III.2.374 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Rush to Treasury Secretary Gallatin who relayed it to Congress. Something odd this year — the account for copper showed a loss instead of the usual gain, but it was a small loss. |
| 1812 | III.2.384 | An assay of foreign coins, from mint director Robert Patterson to Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin, who relayed it to Congress. Some verification needed. |
| 1812 | III.2.385 | A short report from mint director Robert Patterson to President Madison, who relayed it to Congress. More than half a million dollars worth of bullion deposits sits in mint vaults, awaiting coinage. |
| 1812 | III.2.392 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Rush to Treasury Secretary Gallatin who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1813 | III.2.401 | An assay of foreign coins, from mint director Robert Patterson to Acting Treasury Secretary William Jones, who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1813 | III.2.402 | A short report from mint director Robert Patterson to President Madison, who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1813 | III.2.419 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Bacon to Treasury Secretary Campbell who relayed it to Congress. Some verification needed. |
| 1813 | III.2.420 | A petition to Treasury Secretary Campbell who forwarded it to Congress. Bankers of Baltimore experience a lack of gold coins; they ask that foreign gold coins be given legal tender status, and ask that the exportation of specie be prohibited. |
| 1814 | III.2.437 | A short report from mint director Robert Patterson to President Madison, who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1814 | III.2.445 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Acting Comptroller of the Treasury Lufborough to Treasury Secretary Dallas who relayed it to Congress. Some verification needed. |
| 1815 | III.3.461 | A short report from mint director Robert Patterson to President Madison, who relayed it to Congress. The lack of bulion resulted in a very small coinage in 1815, but the facilities are capable of producing $47,000 worth of cents in one year. |
| 1815 | III.3.484 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Anderson to Treasury Secretary Dallas who relayed it to Congress. Some verification needed. |
| 1816 | III.3.477 | A short report from Treasury Secretary Dallas, responding to a request from Chairman Calhoun of the Committee on the National Currency. To answer a domestic need, the gold and silver coins of certain nations should be made legal tender for three years; he concludes with the generally accepted assessments and valuations of the pieces. |
| 1816 | III.3.483 | A report from Treasury Secretary Dallas, responding to a request from Chairman Calhoun of the Committee on the National Currency. The thoughts on what could be acceptable payment when collecting the dues of the Government — one idea is stamps on the notes from banks that do not pay in specie. |
| 1816 | III.3.487 | Treasury Secretary Dallas relays, and agrees with, Mint Director Patterson’s answers to questions posed by a select committee on the copper and small silver coins of the United States. The committee recommends that no changes be made to the current coinage (dropping the half-cent and introducing a two-cent coin were among the discussed measures). |
| 1816 | A short report from mint director Patterson to President Madison, who relayed it to Congress. A brick building replaces wooden structures. A steam engine replaces some horse power. Some verification needed. | |
| 1816 | III.3.493 | A short report from mint director Patterson to President Madison, who relayed it to Congress. This report, from American State Papers, is the same as the above original report that was printed in 1817. |
| 1816 | III.3.508 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Anderson to Treasury Secretary Crawford who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1817 | Working on this report. A short report from mint director Patterson to President Madison, as found in Copies of the Records, Reports, and Correspondence of the Mint Of the United States, Philadelphia, from 1796 to 1834. A brick building replaces wooden structures. A steam engine replaces some horse power. Some verification needed. | |
| 1817 | III.3.507 | Responding to a query from the Senate, Treasury Secretary Crawford feels no legislation is needed to effect a uniform circulating currency in the Union. The principal State banks will resume silver and gold specie payments on their notes; other banks are expected to follow. Due to the recent difficulties, the more than $14,000,000 in public money that was deposited in several banks employed by the Treasury included bank notes in addition to the usual specie. Some verification needed. |
| 1817 | III.3.536 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Anderson to Treasury Secretary Crawford who relayed it to Congress. Some verification needed. |
| 1818 | III.3.520 | An assay of foreign coins, from mint director Patterson to Treasury Secretary Crawford, who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1818 | III.3.540 | An assay of foreign coins, from mint director Patterson to Treasury Secretary Crawford, who relayed it to Congress. The results are very similar to those found earlier in the year. |
| 1818 | III.3.556 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Anderson to Treasury Secretary Crawford who relayed it to Congress. Some verification needed. |
| 1819 | III.3.549 | Responding to a query from the Senate, Treasury Secretary Crawford feels legislation to limit exports of gold and silver coin is not needed. Such a measure can work only in extreme circumstances, and only for short periods. Free trade with moderate tariffs is the best means of effecting a balance of trade, which will halt the flow of precious metals out of the country. |
| 1819 | III.3.550 | Responding to a query from the Senate, Treasury Secretary Crawford feels the mint can satisfy the need for gold coins, but feels foreign silver coins are needed for a few more years. He relays a letter, from mint director Patterson, that touches on production capabilities of the mint as well as the possible cause for the domestic scarcity of gold coins; he includes a London newspaper article on the ratio of gold to silver in Europe, as well as a listing of the fineness of silver coins as determined at the mint. Some verification needed. |
| 1819 | III.3.551 | A committee report to the House of Representatives, starting with background information on the use and valuation of gold and silver, and ending with six recommendations as to the silver and gold coinage. The complicated nature of the question and solution of the metallic coinage is shown, quite unintentionally, by mentioning, early in the report, that gold is undervalued with respect to silver and a new ratio between them is needed, while the recommended changes in coin weights preserve the undervalued ratio. |
| 1819 | III.3.562 | An assay of foreign coins, from mint director Patterson to Treasury Secretary Crawford, who relayed it to Congress. Gold coins are again listed, although they no longer are current. |
| 1820 | III.3.575 | A report by a House committee on Banks and the circulating money in the District of Columbia. The District has too many banks and institutions issuing their own notes. It is expected that a number of existing institutions would use the small proposed extension to existing charters to consolidate into fewer banks, or to wind down their affairs — but it is preferred to have two banks rather than one in each town of the District. Notes valued less than five dollars should no longer be circulated. |
| 1820 | III.3.582 | A long report from Treasury Secretary Crawford, as requested by Congress, providing many details on the Bank of the United States and its offices. Also capital invested in chartered banks and details of these banks, as well as ideas on enabling a sufficient circulating medium — whether it be of gold and silver coin, or of paper. This last section provides an interesting survey of contemporary and historical balance of trade and circulating media. |
| 1819 | III.3.585 | A short report from mint director Patterson to President Monroe, who relayed it to Congress. The small production was due to months with only small bullion deposits. With just a single press, and, of course, 80 tons of copper, 7.5 million cent pieces could be coined in a year. |
| 1819 | III.3.587 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Comptroller of the Treasury Anderson to Treasury Secretary Crawford who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1820 | III.3.591 | A memorial from the legislature of Louisiana, detailing the hardships experienced due to the scarcity of gold resulting from the recent law that made foreign gold coins not current. |
| 1820 | III.3.618 | A short report from mint director Patterson to President Monroe, who relayed it to Congress. The low production of gold and silver coins reflects the small bullion deposits, and the low copper coin production reflects the lack of public demand. |
| 1820 | III.3.621 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Treasury Secretary Crawford who sent it to Congress. |
| 1821 | III.3.610 | An assay of foreign coins, from mint director Patterson to Treasury Secretary Crawford, who relayed it to Congress. Gold coins are not listed, as they no longer are current. |
| 1821 | III.3.614 | A committee report to the House of Representatives, that the low valuation of gold with respect to silver is the cause of the lack of gold coins in the United States. This report cites and repeats the findings of an earlier report, and this report accompanied a bill to correct the problem. |
| 1821 | III.3.625 | An assay of foreign coins, from mint director Robert Patterson to Acting Treasury Secretary Crawford, who relayed it to Congress. The recent assay results for the three types of foreign silver coins still current are stated — they are consistent with prior results. In case Congress is considering legislation regarding foreign coins, a statement of the average of the results, from the past five years, of assays on gold and silver coins is given. Some verification needed. |
| 1821 | III.3.626 | A short report from mint director Patterson to President Monroe, who relayed it to Congress. Almost a quarter of the deposited silver bullion came from South America or Mexico. |
| 1822 | III.4.655 | An assay of foreign silver coins, from mint director Robert Patterson to Treasury Secretary Crawford, who relayed it to Congress. The recent assay results for the three types of foreign silver coins still current are stated — they are consistent with prior results. |
| 1822 | III.4.676 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Treasury Secretary Crawford who sent it to Congress. |
| 1823 | III.4.664 | A committee report to the House of Representatives, regarding the Mint, the laws regulating the coins of the United States, and the possible use of foreign gold coins. After providing historical background, and noting that the reports of rich copper ore deposits near Lake Superior imply a lower future cost of copper, the committee recommends: the Mint should continue to operate at Philadelphia, and the Mint’s current practice of not charging fees for refining silver or any used alloy metal should be changed. |
| 1823 | III.4.665 | A committee report to the House of Representatives, regarding the continued currency of the crowns and five franc pieces of France. Because of the general scarcity of gold and silver coins, and because the mentioned silver coins of France form most of the precious metal coins now held by banks in the United States, letting their currency lapse would only worsen a difficult situation. A bill continuing their currency for another two years is proposed. Some verification needed. |
| 1823 | III.4.667 | A committee report to the House of Representatives, regarding the continued currency of foreign gold coins. Due to the scarcity of gold coins, the Receivers of Public Moneys should continue to receive foreign gold coins for purchases of public lands; the committee feel the Treasury Department’s decision to continue accepting foreign gold coins, even after the expiration of the law making them current, was appropriate and that a new law should continue their currency for public land sales. In an attached letter, Treasury Secretary Crawford again asks that the relative valuation of gold and silver in coins should be changed to a ratio more consistent with the use by our foreign trading partners. |
| 1823 | III.5.710 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Treasury Secretary Crawford who sent it to Congress. Some verification needed on some inconsistent values from the 1822 report (#676). |
| 1824 | III.4.689 | An assay of foreign coins, from mint director Robert Patterson to Treasury Secretary Crawford, who relayed it to Congress. The recent assay results for the three types of foreign silver coins still current are stated — they are consistent with prior results. In addition, some recent British and Portuguese gold coins were assayed; no specimens of recent French or Spanish gold coins could be procured. |
| 1824 | III.5.726 | A report from mint director Moore to President Monroe, who relayed it to Congress. The amount of gold, silver, and copper coins minted in 1824 almost reaches the highest level ever attained, in 1820. This is the third year of inconsiderable deposits of gold, because gold continues to bring a premium over its standard value. Silver deposits have been abundant during the year. |
| 1824 | III.5.731 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Treasury Secretary Crawford who sent it to Congress. Some verification needed on some inconsistent values from the 1822 report (#676). |
| 1825 | III.5.725 | An assay of foreign coins, from mint director Samuel Moore to Treasury Secretary Crawford, who relayed it to Congress. The recent assay results for the four types of foreign gold coins and three types of foreign silver coins still current are stated — they are consistent with prior results. |
| 1825 | III.5.746 | A report from mint director Moore to President Adams, who relayed it to Congress. The amount of gold bullion sourced from North Carolina, at just under $17,000 worth, is more than in any prior year. Although the value of minted coins is less than in the prior year, the number of minted gold and silver coins exceeds that from any year; this is partly due to the availability of less silver bullion, and the decision to produce more silver coins of a small denomination. |
| 1825 | III.5.747 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Treasury Secretary Rush who sent it to Congress. |
| 1825 | III.5.748 | An assay of foreign coins, from mint director Samuel Moore to Treasury Secretary Rush, who relayed it to Congress. Director Moore summarizes the report from the mint’s assayer for the four types of foreign gold coins and three types of foreign silver coins still current, and then summarizes the assays from the last ten years. |
| 1826 | III.5.767 | As requested by a resolution of the Senate, a detailed assay of foreign coins, from mint director Samuel Moore to Treasury Secretary Rush, to President Adams, who relayed it to Congress. Evidently the summary, as presented in #748, did not go over well with Congress, who expected a level of details as found in earlier assay reports. Pure copper is found to be the common alloy in silver coins, while the alloy for gold coins is some combination of copper and silver. Although some mints use a constant ratio between the copper and silver in their gold coinage, other mints do not; the U.S. uses an alloy with equal parts of copper and silver to obtain a pleasing consistent color for the gold coins. Some verification needed. |
| 1826 | HED113 | A short report from mint director Moore to President Adams, who relayed it to Congress. Part of the reason for the small gold coinage at the mint is the higher premium, from 4% to 10% depending upon type, available elsewhere in commerce – any coinage cannot be retained in circulation under this condition. Silver production of only the half dollars is more acceptable to depositors of bullion, leaving the circulating small coin demand mostly supplied by the accustomed fractions of the Spanish dollar. The copper coins of the United States are popular in more districts than in the past. [This is one of a few reports from this era which did not appear in American State Papers.] |
| 1826 | III.5.783 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Treasury Secretary Rush who sent it to Congress. |
| 1827 | III.5.827 | A report from mint director Moore to President Adams, who relayed it to Congress. The fineness of the gold bullion from North Carolina generally exceeds the fineness of our gold coins. The supply of silver has been unusually abundant. Prepaid orders for copper coins can be shipped at mint expense and risk to all commonly accessible locations in the United States. |
| 1827 | III.5.911 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Treasury Secretary Rush who sent it to Congress. |
| 1827 | III.5.912 | A short report regarding an assay of the foreign coins that are current in the United States, from mint director Samuel Moore to Treasury Secretary Rush, who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1828 | HED69 | A short report from mint director Samuel Moore to President Adams, who relayed it to Congress. The value of gold received from North Carolina is more than twice the value received in any prior year. In its first 35 years of operation, the mint has produced about 32 millions of dollars worth of coins. In the last five years, the annual rate of production is $2 million, and the annual expense is about $28,000. |
| 1828 | S40 | A short report regarding an assay of the foreign coins that are current in the United States, from mint director Samuel Moore to Treasury Secretary Rush, who relayed it to Congress. |
| 1828 | S44 | A short report from Treasury Secretary Rush, responding to a request by the Senate, showing the quarterly balances of public money in the Bank of the United States. |
| 1828 | HTD132 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint,
from Treasury Secretary Rush who sent it to Congress.
[A discrepancy, in a small number carried from the prior annual statement, is highlighted in red in this report.] |
| 1830 | S19 | A report from a Senate committee, relating to a submitted bill concerning the current coins; current status and proposed changes are reviewed. Current law does not declare that copper coins are legal tender, and silver coins are legal tender for any size of transaction. Estimates of metal loss due to wear are given for silver and gold coins, even for Spanish silver coins. The limited circulation of silver coins is discussed, as is the rare circulation of gold coins. |
| 1829 | HED56 | A short report from mint director Samuel Moore to President Jackson, who relayed it to Congress. The increase in the amount of gold received from North Carolina in recent years is deemed remarkable (currently $128,000). The emission of half dimes, starting on the 4th of July, is more than fourfold the whole amount previously coined. |
| 1830 | S135 | to be processed next. |
| 1829 | HTD112 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint,
from Treasury Secretary Ingham who sent it to Congress.
[Two errors, in adding grains of gold, are highlighted in red in this report; as is an error in adding weights of silver (or there is an error in one of the three values being summed).] |
| 1830 | HED46 | A short report from mint director Samuel Moore to President Jackson, who relayed it to Congress. The producing States have increased their annual production, and it is remarkable that Georgia entered the roll of producers with gold worth $212,000. The coinage exceeds that from any prior year, and the amount of bullion in mint vaults has never been higher. The opening of the new mint building will be later than planned. |
| 1831 | HD94 | A report, from a House committee, on silver coinage. A history of primarily silver coinage during the last few centuries is follwed by recent details on imports and exports of silver and gold, the domestic use of foreign coins, the cost of producing coins, and how to discourage the export of US coins. The Director of the Mint answers 18 questions posed by Congress. Congress considers a bill giving legal tender status to certain foreign silver coins for a period of three years. |
| 1831 | HD95 | A report from a House committee, commenting on a bill from
the Senate, concerning the gold coins of the United States.
Specifically, the relative value of gold to silver.
Because the government’s price for gold, relative to silver, is
lower than in some other countries, newly minted US gold coins soon
leave the country.
The committee’s findings include “to maintain both gold
and silver in circulation, and to preserve silver as the measure of
commerce and contracts, gold must be restricted to small payments.”
The committee feels the ratio of gold to silver should be changed to
1 to 15⅝.
[This document is from the Second Session of the 21st Congress, but the date February 22, 1821 appears below the title in the printed original. The correct date is February 22, 1831.] |
| 1831 | HD39 | A report, from a House committee, on establishing assay offices in North Carolina and Georgia; with a sampling of the many submitted supporting documents relating to domestic gold production. The items include: the Mint Director’s comments on the proposals, along with his annual report for 1830; a petition from the North Carolina legislature estimating it will be a century before their mines can attain their highest yield; and reports by local officials who provide details, of varying levels, from their region. |
| 1831 | HED57 | A short report from mint director Samuel Moore to President Jackson, who relayed it to Congress. The increase in the domestic gold production continues, with the first mention of small amounts from Tennessee and Alabama. The almost $4,000,000 in coins produced is more than ever produced in a prior year; with the new facility completed soon, a regular bullion supply, and new mint proceedures, a production target of $6,000,000 in coins this year is reasonable. |
| 1832 | HD420 | A report, from a House committee, on gold and silver coins of the United States. The initial part is a wide-ranging philosophical discourse upon the value of different types of money and how to maintain a constant value of property and goods; quotes, from books and reports by esteemed authorities, have their source identified with footnotes. Most of this report is occupied by reports from the prior session: the reports from 1831 on the silver (House report #94) and gold (House report #95) coinage. Because the recommended acts from the prior session were not passed, the reports are repeated here with a long, eloquent introduction. |
| 1832 | HED54 | A short report from mint director Samuel Moore to President Jackson, who relayed it to Congress. With the increasing domestic gold production, the U.S. mines produced one-sixth as much gold as was produced by the mines of Europe and America. The decline in coin production is blamed on the epidemics in the eastern U.S. cities. |
| 1833 | HED48 | A short report from mint director Samuel Moore to President Jackson, who relayed it to Congress. The domestic gold production is higher than in any previous year. |
| 1834 | HED74 | A short report from mint director Samuel Moore to President Jackson, who relayed it to Congress. The amount of silver coined exceeds the amount from the prior year, while the amount of gold exceeds the total from the combined prior nine years! An early increase in silver deposits resulted in delayed payment to depositors, which resulted in reduced deposits later in the year; adjustments have been made, so the mint should handle any similar situation. |
| 1835 | HTD99 | A report on the Congressionally proposed branch mints, from mint director Moore, to the Secretary of the Treasury, who relayed it to Congress. The gradual decline of the quality of the coins from certain Spanish American mints shows the need for the close monitoring of mint operations, as is performed in the sytem of French branch mints where the coin quality is high. An estimate of the startup cost for branches, for gold and silver coins, in New Orleans and New York is $200,000 each, while an only-gold branch in the Southern gold is estimated at $50,000. Annual costs are estimated at $35,000 each for the first two, and $15,000 for the last. A branch in New Orleans would produce the largest benefit. |
| 1835 | HED76 | A long report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Jackson, who relayed it to Congress. The total number of silver and copper coins greatly exceeds the number from any prior year. Improvements in the processes and machinery have been started, and more are anticipated. Congress is urged to change the fineness of the gold and silver coins to 900 parts per thousand, so as to simplify the long and troublesome calculations for gold (116 parts fine in 129) and silver (1,485 parts fine in 1,664). Construction of the three branch mints proceeds, with reports and documents appended. Some changes to staffing the branch mints are suggested. |
| 1836 | HED96 | A report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Jackson, who relayed it to Congress. The value of domestically mined gold continues to fall, due to the exhaustion of the surface deposites. Informed individuals express confidence that deep mines will find an immense wealth. Improvements have been made to every department, from a new design for the dollar, to a silver refining method that is faster and less expensive, to reducing the amount of handwork necessary on a die prepared from a hub, to using steam power for all copper coins (and some of the half dollars). All branch mints might be in operation this year. |
| 1836 | HTD457 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Treasury Secretary Levi Woodbury who sent it to the House of Representatives. This document is written by the Treasury Department based upon accounting records sent by the mint, which is late in sending the records. This letter, from July of 1838, is based upon copper account statements only through September 30, 1836, while the gold and silver account statements cover all of 1836. |
| 1837 | HED110 | A short report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Van Buren, who relayed it to Congress. To answer the need for small coins, more than nine million with a value less than a half dollar were minted; much more than in any previous year. Government deposits at the Mint provide a ready source of coins with which to pay depositors of bullion as soon as the bullion’s value is determined; thus a long standing complaint of the Mint’s operation is resolved. The mint at Charlotte is finished and has commenced some operations, the mint at Dahlonega is nearly completed, and the mint at New Orleans should commence operations shortly. |
| 1837 | S279 | The required annual financial statements, on the operation of the mint, from Treasury Secretary Levi Woodbury who sent it to Congress. This document is written by the Treasury Department based upon accounting records sent by the mint, which is late in sending the records. However, this letter, from February of 1839, is not as late as the similar report for 1836 was. |
| 1838 | HED273 | A letter, from the Secretary of the Treasury Levi Woodbury, answering a House resolution regarding the costs and expenses of the principal mint and its branches, along with the time to coin bullion and the amount of coin struck at the branches. Mint Director Patterson provides details regarding the Philadelphia mint, but information from the branches is sparse — although construction is not complete, bullion deposits have been accepted but coinage has not started. |
| 1838 | S98 | A report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Van Buren, who relayed it to Congress. As the need for small coins continues, the coinage this year, of pieces of less value than a half dollar, exceeds that of last year. The possession of public funds, in gold and silver coins, allows for most bullion depositors to be paid quickly. The mints at Charlotte and Dahlonega have accepted gold bullion, and have produced coins from that bullion. The mint at New Orleans produced only dimes in its first year of operation, and granted leaves of absence, from August through October, to the officers and workers recently arrived from the north so they could avoid the recent sickly season. The act of 1834 assigns too high of values to foreign gold coins, and should be repealed. |
| 1839 | S142 | A short report from Treasury Secretary Levi Woodbury to the Senate, providing requested information on imports and exports of specie since 1834, the amount of gold coinage since 1834, and the amount of circulating notes of the late Bank of the United States. This small report was considered important enough to merit an extra 5,000 copies be printed for the use of the Senate. |
| 1839 | HED91 | A short report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Van Buren, who relayed it to Congress. This required annual report is late due to the lack of final figures from the New Orleans branch mint — figures as of August 17 are expected to be close to the year-end figures, due to the closure during the fatal epidemic that saw two officers and four workmen die. [The next document for 1839, listed as S169, is a supplementary report, restating the New Orleans statistics based upon the late-arriving details for the final quarter of 1839.] Earlier in the year, disagreements among New Orleans officers ended in mutual denouncements; although an investigation showed no reason to suspect the integrity of the officers, the conditions required painful measures (the details of which are not stated). New Orleans now has an able corp of acclimated officers and workmen, so further interruptions are not expected. |
| 1839 | S169 | A short supplemental report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Van Buren, who relayed it to Congress. This provides the just-received figures from the New Orleans branch mint, covering the last quarter of 1839. |
| 1839 | S290 | A long report from Treasury Secretary Rush, responding to a request by the Senate, showing the annual imports and exports of gold and silver, both bullion and in coin, along with the annual domestic coinage. |
| 1840 | HED168 | An assay of current foreign gold and silver coins, from mint director R.M. Patterson to Treasury Secretary Levi Woodbury, who relayed it to Congress. The tables provide current valuations for a range of coins; for some coins, the current law assigns a value higher than deserved. |
| 1840 | HED75 | A report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Van Buren,
who relayed it to Congress.
Improvements at the main mint have increased its coinage ability, but the
lack of bullion has kept actual coinage low.
The branch mint at New Orleans has avoided the disasters of the prior year,
and is current with coinage from its bullion deposites.
Two circumstances diminish the amount of gold coinage: the private coinage
in the neighborhood of the mines has less gold than implied by its face value
but it is accepted at face value locally, and the over-valuation, by the act
of June 28, 1834, of some foreign gold coins.
Congress is asked if copies of medals from the war of the Revolution and the
last war can be struck for public sale, and at what price.
[Small errors in tables are corrected and shown against a green background in this report.] |
| 1841 | S40 | To be added. |
| S87 | A report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Tyler,
who relayed it to Congress.
The first silver from domestic mines is deposited at the mint,
but the small supply of bullion deposits results in the four mint facilities
producing only one third of the coins produced in Philadelphia alone in 1836.
[A small typo is first noticed in this report — my correction is highlighted in green in this report.] | |
| 1842 | HED208 | A short report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Tyler, who relayed it to Congress. A new source of silver is Canada, which sent more than $200,000 worth of worn French crowns and half crowns. The production of the mint and its branches was significantly larger than in the prior year. Some verification needed. |
| 1843 | HED76 | A short report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Tyler, who relayed it to Congress. The value of the coins minted last year far exceeds the value from any former year. The amount of domestic gold sent to the mint and its branches exceeds that of any former year. |
| 1844 | HED99 | A short report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Tyler,
who relayed it to Congress.
The Charlotte mint building was destroyed by a fire which destroyed a great part of the machinery.
Plans and estimates for rebuilding have been brought to Congress.
With two million dollars worth of gold produced in the last two years by the region served
by the mints at Dahlonega and Charlotte, this region has gold mines as numerous
and rich as any in the world.
[A number of typos to prior year values are introduced in this report — my corrections are highlighted in green in this report.] |
| 1845 | HED113 | A short report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Polk,
who relayed it to Congress.
The walls of the Charlotte mint building have been rebuilt,
and new machinery has been built at the Philadelphia mint and sent to Charlotte —
in a few months, operations should resume in Charlotte.
[A number of typos appear in this report — some new and some carried from the prior report — with my corrections highlighted in green in this report.] |
| 1846 | HED75 | A short report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Polk,
who relayed it to Congress.
The rebuilding of the Charlotte branch mint has been completed
and new machinery has been installed, all at a cost less than
the estimates – operations resumed last October.
[The corrections to erroneous values are highlighted in green in this report.] |
| 1847 | S17 | A short report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Polk,
who relayed it to Congress.
The value of the gold coinage, at more than $20 million, greatly exceeded
the value produced in any prior year.
This is due to the almost $10 million of foreign coinage
received for moneys due to the United States which,
under the act of February 9, 1793, must be coined anew
before being issued in circulation.
[Some typos from the prior report are corrected here (or in 1846 report) — some new are introduced here, and some are carried from the prior report — my corrections are highlighted in green in this report.] |
| 1848 | HED41 | A report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Polk,
who relayed it to Congress.
This is the first report to list gold from mines in the annexed territories
of New Mexico and California — small deposites for this year,
with expectations of greater amounts in the future.
[Some typos from the prior report are corrected here — some new are introduced here, and some are carried from the prior report — my corrections are highlighted in green in this report.] |
| 1849 | HED31 | A report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Tyler, who relayed it to Congress. The first gold dollars are minted but not so for the first double-eagles, due to die difficulties. The large amount of California gold does not exceed the amount of gold deposited in 1847. However, mostly foreign gold coins were deposited in 1847 while the native California gold contains an amount of silver higher than the legal coinage standard, requiring additional refining steps. The extra steps produced a large backlog of deposits to be coined, but with additional resources now in place, prompt payment to depositors is foreseen. |
| 1850 | S21 | A report from mint director R.M. Patterson to President Fillmore, who relayed it to Congress. The gold from California is reaching the mints in much larger quantities than in previous years. |
| 1851 | HED59 | A report from mint director George N. Eckert to President Fillmore,
who relayed it to Congress.
The previously-noted delay in refining and minting the deposits
of native gold are no more.
The three-cent piece was introduced to apparent public favor,
while the demand for gold coins favors the large coins at the expense
of the dollars and quarter-eagles.
[A correction is highlighted in green in this report.] |
| 1852 | HMD60 | A joint resolution of the California legislature in relation to the establishment of a branch mint in California. |
| 1852 | S104 | A report, from the Senate committee on finance, regarding a change in the coinage;
this to accompany a Senate bill.
To address the disappearance of silver coinage, and the use of small bank notes,
the country should adopt the gold standard with a subsidiary silver coinage being
of a legal tender in amounts of no more than $5.
A charge of 0.5% is proposed on deposits of gold and silver, but the new silver
coin will not be struck for the accounts of the depositors.
Although new denominations of $2 and $3 would enable direct payments of more
amounts in gold coins, the introduction of only a $3 gold coin is proposed now;
the $2½ could be dropped, as could the double eagle because it is just a
bullion coin.
European comments on the inconsistent quality of United States gold coins were
transmitted via the Secretary of State, Daniel Webster.
[Small corrections are highlighted in green in this report.] |
| 1852 | HED92 | A letter from the Secretary of the Treasury, forwarding a plan for a mint at San Francisco and mentioning a second submitted plan which now is at the printer. The cost of machinery is estimated between $200,000 and $250,000. The cost of just the building is estimated at $876,000, to permit operations as at Philadelphia. A lesser building, to satisfy the current wants of California, might cost between $200,000 and $250,000 – it would mint gold coins for California, and put all other gold into bars stamped with fineness and value. |
| 1852 | HED132 | A letter from the Secretary of the Treasury about the mint at San Francisco. The proposed limitation of $300,000 for the cost of buildings and machinery is inadequate to procure them of a suitable character. An estimate of expenses for one year is included – the $100,000 for acids is equal to the amount for salaries, wages, and contingencies. When shipped around Cape Horn, acids must be carried on deck – it appears only one-fifth of the amount shipped arrives safely. |
| 1852 | HED42 | A report from mint director George N. Eckert to President Fillmore, who relayed it to Congress. More than $53 million worth of California gold was received at the mints, but this is about $2 million less than was received in 1851. The number of three-cent pieces is more than five times the number of all other silver coins, and amounted to 56% of the value of all 1852 silver coins. Under present laws, the three-cent coin is the only silver coin with a proportionate value to gold allowing the mint to issue it; some legislation to readjust the proportionate weights of the gold and silver coins is imperative. |
| 1853 | HED40 | A report from mint director James Ross Snowden to President Pierce, who relayed it to Congress. The design for the three dollar gold piece is finalized with production expected shortly. Some equipment for the branch mint at San Francisco is slow in arriving, so production is expected to start next year. The recent recoinage of silver is successful, but another recoinage may become necessary. The large amounts of gold from California should be put to use in the replacement of small denomination notes, which could be achieved through a stamp duty on small notes. |
| 1854 | HED62 | Not processed. |
| 1854 | HED68 | An assay of current foreign gold and silver coins, from mint director James Ross Snowden to Treasury Secretary Levi Woodbury, who relayed it to Congress. The tables provide current valuations for a range of coins; for some coins, the current law assigns a value higher than deserved. |
| 1855 | HED37 | A letter from the Secretary of the Treasury, relaying letters asking for more funds for the mints. The letter from James Snowden, the Director of the Mint, relays a letter from the superintendent of the San Francisco mint, asking for an appropriation of $66,000 to cover a deficiency in the current fiscal year. In his letter, Snowden then added his request for an appropriation of $37,000 for Philadelphia, to cover a deficiency in the current fiscal year. Part of the problem lies in the inability to predict to which mints or assay office gold bullion or bars will be sent by the owners. Snowden concludes by noting discrepancies between the reported appropriations in a proposed bill and his original requests. |
| 1855 | HED38 | A letter from the Secretary of the Treasury about the roof of the mint at Charlotte. A spark from their chimney set fire to the shingles. Although the fire was quickly put out, an examination of the wooden roof found it to be in terrible shape. A fire-proof roof, of tin or slate, is requested. |
| 1855 | HED70 | A report from mint director James Ross Snowden to President Pierce, who relayed it to Congress. Half of the report consists of a descriptive listing of the dies of medals in the collection of the U.S. Mint. This list is a corrected and enlarged version of the listing contained in the Mint Report from 1853. |
| 1855 | HED71 | A short letter from Secretary of the Treasury James Guthrie to Congress, recommending an additional current-year appropriation to cover the salary increases granted, in an earlier bill, to some clerks at the New Orleans branch mint. |
| 1856 | S185 | A report from the Senate committee of claims, concerning a memorial from Franklin Peale, a former employee of the mint. The committee responds somewhat favorably to the list of improvements made by Franklin Peale during his years at the mint. These improvements went beyond the scope and requirements of the positions held, and rendered significant improvements to the mint and its branches. |
| 1856 | HED124 | A letter from mint director James Ross Snowden to Treasury Secretary Guthrie, who relayed it to the House Committee of Ways and Means. A Senate bill would mandate the new cent coin to contain at least 95% copper by weight, but recent experiments show that a coin of 88% copper and 12% nickel has a pleasing appearance. Fifty specimens, of an 88%-12% alloy struck with the current half cent dies, are sent to the Secretary for examination, and he sends 12 of these specimens to the Committee of Ways and Means. |
| 1856 | S37 | A report from mint director James Ross Snowden to President Pierce,
who relayed it to Congress.
The coinage at Philadelphia greatly exceeded the bullion deposits in 1856
because coinage was suspended during fire-proof and security construction
in 1855, while bullion deposists were accepted.
Operations of the New Orleans branch were suspended in October for
fire-proof construction efforts, with operations expected to resume
early in 1857.
[The corrections to erroneous values are highlighted in green in this report.] |
| 1857 | HED32 | A letter from Treasury Secretary Guthrie to the House Committee of Ways and Means, forwarding a long appropriation request from the branch mint at San Francisco. Attached correspondence – from Mint Director Snowden, special agent Browne in San Francisco, Branch Mint Superintendent Lott, and Secretary Guthrie – highlight concerns, explain operations, and give a view of the conditions at the branch mint. The abstracts and explanations of more than one year of vouchers for non-ordinary items provide interesting details. |
| 1857 | HMD45 | A short letter from Treasury Secretary Guthrie to the House Committee of Ways and Means, in reply to a question arising from an earlier letter, in which the Secretary had forwarded information supporting an appropriation of $40,000 for the branch mint at San Francisco. Because the Secretary had not explicitly stated his opinion regarding the appropriation, the House Committee asked his opinion on the appropriation. |
| 1858 | S108 | A report from the Senate committee on finance, concerning a petition from Edward N. Kent. With the mints and assay offices projecting a savings of $240,000 from the use of Mr. Kent’s apparatus during the last 14 years of his patents, the committee reports favorably on his requested payment of $20,000. |
| From this point on, the annual reports are for the fiscal year ending June 30 of the listed year. | ||
| 1859 | The annual report by the Director of the Mint. Silver parted from native gold forms the principal proportion of current domestic silver production. With foreign silver coins no longer a legal tender, and rapidly disappearing from circulation, it is hoped that terms such as shilling will be abandoned. Tables show the amount of old copper (large cents) and foreign silver coins exchanged for the new small cents during the past few years. | |
| 1860 | The annual report by the Director of the Mint. New domestic mines of silver and gold are identified. Fraudulent operations on gold coins increased, the small cent coins are given in exchange only for the old large cents, coinage of the small denomination gold coins should be emphasized in the east, and old thick gold dollar coins are recoined as the thinner current coins with a larger diameter. Envoys from Japan visited the Mint, and the Mint examined examples of coins from Japan. | |
| 1861 | The annual report by the Director of the Mint. The amount of bullion received and coined at the mint and branches exceeds that in any prior year. No reports from the three southern branches have been received since their defections in early 1861; efforts have been made to obtain specimens to determine if their coins are of full value. The mines of the Washoe region yield an increasing quantity, while the new mines in the Territory of Arizona promise a rich silver yield. | |
| 1862 | The annual report by the Director of the Mint. The disturbed condition of the country is the principal cause of the coinage being slightly diminished from the preceeding year. No reports have been received from the branches in New Orleans, Dahlonega, and Charlotte; nothing could justify the reopening of the latter two. The increasing bullion from new mining areas is encouraging. Certain aspects of the loss of value due to the abrasion of gold and silver coins are reviewed. To ensure the circulation of subsidiary silver, consider reducing their weight by 25% – the current cent remains in circulation even though it costs the government scarcely half a cent. | |
| 1863 | HR17 | A report from the Committee of Ways and Means, endorsing the idea of a branch mint in Carson City, Nevada Territory. Interesting geological and commercial information is presented in support. |
| 1863 | The annual report by the Director of the Mint. The coinage is reduced for another year, and for the same reasons. A branch mint opens at Denver, Colorado Territory, but processes only bullion to date. Although the small cent is more popular than the discontinued large cent, the inclusion of nickel to give it an intrinsic value closer to one cent provides no benefit and should be discontinued. | |
| 1864 | The annual report by the Director of the Mint. The annual coinage increases over that for the prior year. The 600-mile overland route to markets is an obstacle to the usefulness of the Branch Mint at Denver, but should be resolved in due time. There is increasing gold and silver production. Little of the Nevada silver is minted into coins in San Francisco, with most sent to Europe as ore or in bars. The main mint and the San Francisco branch are sufficient to provide the needed coinage, but Assay Offices should be introduced into the various mining districts. Experiments with aluminum alloys for the five and ten cent coins did not yield favorable results. The weight and value of the silver dollar should agree with the smaller silver denominations, and our money should be based upon the gold dollar. | |
| 1865 | The annual report by the Director of the Mint. The Branch Mint at Denver processes deposits of raw gold and silver, returning the same to depositors as unparted bars, stamped with weight and fineness. Congress has appropriated funds for erecting a new Mint Building in San Francisco. The Branch Mint at New Orleans could be reopened for silver coinage, for now; the facilities at Charlotte anf Dahlonega could be used as assay offices, but nothing more. Little of the silver produced in Nevada is coined here – most is sent to other countries – the actual production of precious metals, although large, is not reliably known. By the end of December 1865, all gold and silver coins should bear the motto, “In God we trust.” | |
| 1866 | The annual report by the Director of the Mint. The business at the Branch Mint at Denver has not increased during the fiscal year; arrangements for sending processed bullion east, at government expense, should be completed this fiscal year. A new Mint building must be erected in San Francisco, to replace the present building which is unfit, unsafe, and unworthy. Improvements in parting gold from silver, introduced at the New York Assay Office, will be adopted at the Main Mint and its Branches, possibly saving $75,000 annually. Specimens of gold and silver ores from many regions have been examined at the Mint, with an official reort issued for each; this is much preferred to even a practiced eye, due to the diversity of appearances. The withdrawal of the five cent note has created a great demand for the new five cent piece of a copper and nickel alloy. | |
| 1867 | The annual report by the Director of the Mint, H.R. Linderman. The Branch Mint at New Orleans would need little staffing for coining the copper nickel 5-cent piece and assaying gold and silver bullion. The Branch Mint at Charlotte is being prepared for assaying gold and silver bullion. There now is a bullion tax and a coinage charge, of half of one percent for each. Deficiencies of the Mint building and equipment have been corrected. The Mint should be authorized to exchange new pieces for worn pieces, of all coinage metals; a method of redeeming the minor coins was proposed. Brief mention was made of a feasible plan of international coinage. To protect gold coins from being filled with base metal, the coins could be made thinner and the diameter increased. | |
| 1868 | HED189 | A letter, from the Secretary of the Treasury, answering a House resolution regarding the branch mint at San Francisco. The addressed issues include the Haraszthy matter from 1856, and certain actions in the office of the treasurer in 1865, 1866, and 1867. The wastage in the melter and refiner’s department is well within the limits of law. |
| 1868 | The annual report by the Director of the Mint, H.R. Linderman. Operating as an Assay Office, the Branch Mint at Charlotte, North Carolina returns unparted bars to depositors. The new branch mint building to be erected in San Francisco should be fitted up with new and improved machinery; with the main mint, these two facilities will be sufficient for coinage production. Provision for the reduction and redemption of the inferior coins is again recommended. Reducing the Mint charge for the coinage of gold bullion, from 0.5% to 0.25%, would increase the tendency to turn gold bars into coin, and so prepare for a gold currency. The French responded to the rising value of silver, with respect to gold, by reducing the silver content of most denominations; but their reduction in fineness, instead of weight, of each piece is not worthy to be followed. A recent conference on the unification of national currencies was reviewed, as was the poor acceptance of our Silver dollar by the Chinese. | |
| 1869 | The annual report by the Director of the Mint, James Pollack. The Branch Mint at Denver has been changed to an Assay Office; new Assay Offices should be developed where needed, instead of Branch Mints. The Branch Mint at Charlotte is being operated as an Assay Office; the limited deposits are increasing. The Branch Mint at Caron City nears completion; it will be much more an Assay Office than a Mint. The erection of a new Branch Mint building at San Francisco is more necessary than when mentioned in the 1866 report. With the replacement of small paper notes by copper-based small coinage well underway, attention should turn to the circulation of silver change coinage. The systems of weights – troy, avoirdupois, and metric – cries out for simplification, to be made by Congress. | |
| 1870 | The annual report by the Director of the Mint, James Pollack. The Branch Mint at Carson City is operating. Completion of the new Branch Mint building at San Francisco is urged. Nickel-copper cent coins were redeemed for five cent nickel coins. Proposed silver coins of 10, 25, and 50 cents, each with less silver than the current coins, would be used to redeem paper currency. The continued suspension of specie payments is the cause of reduced coinage, compared to ten years ago, even though the population and national wealth are greater. Although some clamor for new designs on the coins, others feel there should be no change except when there is a change in weight or fineness. | |
| 1871 | The annual report by the Director of the Mint, James Pollack. Base coins were redeemed according to the Act of March 3, 1871, while orders were received for the one, two, three, and five cent pieces. The continued suspension of specie payments restricts the work of the Mint and the amount of the coinage. Some new devices for use on coins have been developed at the Mint. Any new law, declaring as uncurrent any gold coins weighing less than some range, should also state who suffers the loss. Underweight private issues of small pieces, supposedly from California, have been accepted by ignorant persons as real money. Filing away the reeding on a gold Double Eagle, and then reengraving the reeds by hand, yields about fifty cents worth of gold; some countries use raised edge lettering on their coins. Experiments show that refining gold by chlorine is faster and more economical than refining by sulfuric acid. | |
| 1872 | Not processed. | |
| 1873 | Not processed. | |
| 1874 | Not processed. | |
| 1875 | Not processed. | |
| 1876 | Not processed. | |
| 1877 | Not processed. | |
| 1878 | Not processed. | |
| 1879 | Not processed. | |
| 1880 | Not processed. | |
| 1881 | Not processed. | |
| 1882 | Not processed. | |
| 1883 | Not processed. | |
| 1884 | Not processed. | |
| 1885 | Not processed. | |
| 1886 | Not completely processed. The price of silver, in terms of gold, continues to fall. Philadelphia mint runs out of room to store silver dollars. The New York Assay Office introduces new equipment to eliminate the release of noxious fumes that angered its neighbors. The old carpets from the adjusting room in the San Francisco mint are burned and produce 172 ounces of gold, and 44 ounces of silver. Questionaires were sent to the mints of most nations, and their responses form the bulk of this report; a world wide snapshot of contemporary mint and monetary practices. | |
| 1887 | Not processed. | |
| 1888 | Not processed. | |
| 1889 | Not processed. | |
| 1890 | Not processed. | |
| 1891 | Not processed. | |
| 1892 | Not processed. | |
| 1893 | Not processed. | |
| 1894 | Not processed. | |
Let me know if you have any of the reports not listed. I am looking to buy reports, especially if they are not in nice condition; but only if the text is readable. Loose bindings, separated bindings, water stains, page tears, and such are okay, provided that the text is present and readable. In the case of the early reports which are quite small, I would like to buy either an original or a clear copy.
I gratefully acknowledge the following sources, for providing me with photocopies of reports I did not have.
| Wayne K. Homren |
| Fred Weinberg |
| Newman Numismatic Portal |
Tired of waiting for me to transcribe the reports into HTML? Looking for more than just mint-related documents? The government has made available page images of the entire American State Papers. Class 3, Finance, includes the Mint Reports up to 1828:
American State Papers, Finance volumes
The St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank has made available page images of the entire Annual Report of the Secretary of the Treasury on the State of the Finances. Each report is in its own PDF file, with sizes ranging from under one megabyte to more than 75 megabytes. These annual reports contain the reports of the many departments of the Treasury, including the Bureau of the Mint: