Salem Witch Trial era coins?

because now that I collect coins these thoughts pop into my mind

Listening to a podcast series on the Salem witch trial.

What coinage would have been used in that era? Mass. Circa 1692-1693?

This is probably an easy question for someone who knows more about coins than I do - I believe the first Mass coins weren’t produced until the late 1700s so curious what would have been.

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

Foreign coins. At that time mostly British. That would have been just a couple years after Massachusetts started issuing paper currency as well.

 

This was about 20 years after the Massachusetts Pine tree coins were last minted but I am sure there were still lots of them around. The Massachusetts mint master was the father in law of one of the witch trial judges too.

 

If anyone can post pictures of any of these coins I would love to see those too!

 

I didn’t know that! Crazy!!

 

I hope I remember the names correctly, but John Hull was the Mintmaster, his daughter Hannah married Judge Samuel Sewall.

 

Very interesting. I thought the tree coin was minted in the 1770s, not the 1670s?

 

John hull and Jacob Sanderson. Both Boston Massachusetts silversmiths in the 17th century. Made from 1652 to ca 1682. Chronology likely NE coinage 1652-3. Willow tree 1653-60 oak tree 1660-70 and pine tree 1670-82. Also likely circulating was Spanish silver British silver and copper and whatever other hard currency could be found. Most business was transacted by barter here’s a small planchet ca 1675-82

 

Were some of the Dutch Duits also being used?

 

Not too likely as those were made for use in the Dutch East Indies (the Indonesia area) on the other side of the world.

 

Thanks. The reason I asked was because an 1736 was the first coin (Duit) I found with my first metal detector on my Dads farm. And it was right around the time my village was incorporated. It seemed a bit strange as it was Polish immigrants who built the farm but I suppose a Dutch immigrant could have been working the farm and simply lost it. I have never been able to find any written history on the farm yet.

 

I believe the Dutch originally colonized New York (as New Amsterdam) but then gave control over to England.

 

Is it possible any French or more specificly French Colonly currency was ciriculating around then? I understand that the French and British weren’t the bestest of friends at the time but at the end of the day, silver is still silver.

 

I live in Mass. but I suppose anything is possible. A lot of early settlers migrated to where ever work was available, especially with forest clear cutting and mining opportunities.

 

Foreign coins and tokens which circulated in early and colonial America is an entire numismatic group with hundreds of examples.

A subset would be the coins manufactured before 1692.

 

Are there any scholarly studies on coinage in Colonial America?

 

There are many, for example:

Schilke, Oscar and Solomon, America's Foreign Coins (1964)
Carothers, Neil - Fractional Money (1930 and 1967)
Breen, Walter - Walter Breen's Complete Encyclopedia of US coins (1978)

 

Here’s a scanned copy of Fractional Money: https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/book/521068

 

Correct. I'm not sure I would say gave, but the Dutch were driven out by 1690. Long before Dutch East Indies 1 duit "New York pennies" were ever struck.