What is the Coinage Act of 1792?
Legislation from the US Congress that establishes a mint and lists the regulation of coins. It established five officers of the mint and their duties. The act also lists denominations of coin as well as instructions for how the mint issues bullion.
The Coinage Act of 1792 is also known as the Mint Act and is the foundation upon which modern U.S. currency is laid. The act introduced the dollar as official U.S. currency and tied the dollar to silver. At the time of the act, silver was the standard and preferred currency. Using gold for purchases wasn’t commonplace. It also regulated coin production and their precious metal contents, and declared that the U.S. Mint must be at the seat of government, which was in Philadephia at the time. The mint building in Philadephia was the first federal building established under the U.S. Constitution. The U.S Mint is now headquartered in Washington D.C. and has facilities in Philadephia, Denver, West Point, San Francisco, and Fort Knox.
The five original offices created in the U.S. Mint by the Act included:
- Director of the U.S. Mint
- Assayer of the U.S. Mint
- Chief Coiner of the U.S. Mint
- Engraver of the U.S. Mint
- Treasurer of the U.S Mint.
Although under the rules of the act, one person could hold the office of both Chief Coiner and Engraver.
While many of the provisions in the act were changed and updated over time, most of the stipulations laid out were in application for many years. One article stipulated that coins should be made in silver, gold, and copper. Another stipulation stated that the word “Liberty” and the year of mintage should be displayed on one side of coins and the words “United States of America” displayed on the other (but only for silver and gold coins).
The first coins minted under the Coinage Act of 1792 included the following:
- $10 Golden Eagle
- $5 Golden Half Eagle
- $1 Silver Dollar
- $.50 Silver Half Dollar
- $0.01 Copper Cent
- $.005 Copper Half Cent
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