great for kids and adult kids like me...I came across this and wanted to share it with all. Lots of neat facts that I was not aware of. http://www.usmint.gov/kids/coinNews/funFacts.cfm?group=1
Neat! Some of those "facts" I have heard of, but some to many of them are new to me. Thank you for posting this site.
George Washington was our first President—but not the first President on a circulating coin. In 1909, President Lincoln appeared on a one-cent coin and became the first real person—as well as the first American president—to have his face appear on a regular-issue American coin.
I've never heard the term "Ferris Wheel" being applied to silver dollars. And it would have to be a twentieth century term since the Ferris wheel didn't exist until 1893. The early mint was power by horses and human muscle power but as far as I know they never used oxen. There is actually no evidence that Washington ever visited the Mint. Never heard of Revere providing rolled copper to the mint. James Clarke a Denver Mint employee stole a gold bar in 1864? The Denver Mint opened in 1906. The government bought out Clarke, Gruber & Co in 1862 and in 1864 it was an Assay office not a Mint. " The Mint produced its first circulating coins—all $111.78 worth of them—in March 1793. That first batch consisted of 11,178 copper cents. Soon after, the Mint began issuing gold and silver coins as well." If you consider a year and a half for silver and two years for gold to be "soon". The Mint was originally under the Dept of State and reported to Jefferson. Then became independent in 1799 to 1873. "The Mint's first gold and silver coins had no denominations on them." The halves and dollars did, on the edge starting in 1794. " The quarter dollar made in 1804 was the first silver coin in the United States Mint's history to have a value on it! " Wrong see previous. "Lady Liberty was on her feet for 42 years... The imaginary woman who stood for liberty on our coins was always shown standing (unless only her head was shown) since she first appeared in 1794. But she took a seat in 1836 when the "Seated Liberty" silver dollars came out and showed her sitting on a rock. She probably needed the rest!" Huh? She was only shown as a bust until 1836 so haw do they know she was standing? The first standing figure of Liberty didn't appear until 1907. "But today, most coins except Philadelphia's have mint marks on the back." Mintmarks moved to the obverse in 1968 and I think the only coin since then to have a mintmark on the back is the silver eagle.
Yikes! Lots of mistakes and head-scratchers on that site. More: 13. Yes, there were "white cents" that didn't look at all like pennies... Missing is the fact that the reason they didn't look at all like pennies [sic] is that they were much smaller. I've also never heard of them having been called "white cents," but rather "nickels." 27. Heads, it's Lincoln; tails, it's Lincoln. "The Lincoln cent (1959 to present) features this beloved president on both sides of the coin." Well, 1959 to 2009, anyway. Then there's the picky little stuff like "one pence [sic]." 60. Although Lady Liberty doesn't circulate anymore, she still appears on some special coins. So that statue on the reverse of the president dollars is someone else? Oh, wait, those don't circulate. Never mind. 70. When a coin is made, which side is the top? "You may know that coins at the United States Mint are struck with dies while lying down." I don't think this is the case anymore. My understanding is that current presses for circulating coins have the dies opposing each other from side to side. The "top and bottom" die concept only exists for proofs and other lower-production, higher care, coins.
Actually, Denver was a "private mint" that opened on 25 July 1860, in a two story brick building on the corner of Market and 16th Streets...by the same Clarke, Gruber & Co that you mentioned.
