The 1848 CAL. $2.50 Gold … The first U.S. commemorative coin?

[BillJones]

 

My big purchase at the Baltimore coin show was this 1848 quarter eagle in PCGS AU-55. This coin had been on my list for several months.

 

Gold was discovered in California in January of 1848. A few months later, probably 80% of the adult male population was engaged in finding gold. Colonel Richard B. Mason, who was the military governor of California, led an exposition of soldiers (including future Civil War Union General, William T. Sherman) to the California goldfields, which were east of San Francisco, in July 1848. There he gathered 13 samples of gold from the various sites. To that he added an “oyster can” full of gold that had been taken in by the San Francisco Customs House. In August sent one of his lieutenants to Washington with a tea caddy full of gold that weighed about 231 ounces.

 

Upon the arrival of gold in Washington, Secretary of War, William Marcy, forwarded the gold, less one pound, to the Philadelphia mint. His instructions were to use the gold to make one or two small gold bars, two medals for Generals Zachary Taylor and Winfield Scott, and some quarter eagles with a distinguishing mark. The two gold medals were later made from another gold deposit, but this first California gold deposit to the Philadelphia mint was used to make the gold bars and an estimated 1,389, 1848 CAL. quarter eagles.

 

A letter from Mint Director Patterson confirmed that the California gold was used to make the quarter eagles and that those coins were marked with the CAL. counterstamp on the revere. As such these coins commemorated the first shipment of California gold to a United States mint, and they were made from gold included in that shipment. No other U.S. commemorative coin can be as closely associated with the event that it marks.

 

That’s the “Readers Digest” version of the story. I’ll expand it if there is interest.

 

[TomB]

Holy Smokes, Bill! What a gorgeous example of the issue! By the way, please feel free to expand the material on the coin; it is cool information to read.

[physics-fan3.14]

I can't imagine a more perfect color for a piece of gold. Geez, that's gorgeous.

[bsshog40]

So I'm presuming this would be the top of the line for the $2.50 Gold that would be sought after, huh Bill? Very nice Bill!

[BillJones]

So I'm presuming this would be the top of the line for the $2.50 Gold that would be sought after, huh Bill? Very nice Bill!

 

No actually I've been looking for two type coins that harder to find than this one. This coin was on my "B" list, but aside from those two bears, I'm going to cool it on the "B" list for a while.

[BillJones]

I posted this article that I wrote ATS so I'll post it here. Please ask for permission if you wish to use it somewhere.

 

The 1848 CAL Quarter Eagle

America’s First Commemorative Coin

By Bill Jones

 

In January of 1848 James Marshall, who was an employee of John Sutter, discovered gold in the race of a sawmill that on was on Sutter’s property. The men soon discovered additional gold deposits further upstream, and before long it was found that there were many gold deposits in the area. Sutter and his men tried to keep their discovery a secret, but that proved to be impossible. By spring dozens of prospectors were looking for gold with tools that ranged from a simple metal pan to a primitive device called a cradle.

 

In Monterey, California Colonel Richard B. Mason, who was the military governor of the soon to be U.S. territory, viewed the developments with concern and interest. “Gold fever” had prompted many of the enlisted men in his unit to desert their posts and head for the gold fields in search of wealth. In addition men who had been engaged in almost every profession from farming to office clerk had left their jobs “to strike it rich.” Mason decided that the time had come to report the news of the California bonanza to his superiors and to provide them with some physical evidence of the gold strike.

 

In July Mason and his chief aid, Lieutenant William Sherman, selected four good soldiers and some other support personnel and set out for the Sacramento Valley. Over the following weeks they purchased 13 samples of gold from the miners in the area and carefully marked on a map where those samples had been obtained. In August Mason combined those samples, along with an “oyster can” full of gold that Mason purchased from the San Francisco Custom House for the depressed price of $10 an ounce. He packed the entire deposit into a tea caddy.

 

Mason selected Lieutenant Lucien Loeser to take the box, which contained 230 ounces of gold, to Washington, DC, and asked Lieutenant Sherman to write a report about the California discoveries. Sixteen years later Lieutenant William T. Sherman, by then a Union general, would emblazon his name into the history books with his famous or for some infamous March to the Sea.

 

Lieutenant Loeser set out on his journey on August 30. The first leg of Loeser’s trip took him to Payta, Peru. There he boarded another ship that took him to Panama where he crossed over land to board a ship on the Atlantic side. From there he steamed to Kingston, Jamaica where he embarked on another ship to New Orleans, Louisiana. From there he took the final leg of his journey to Washington, DC. Loeser arrived in Washington on December 7.

 

Two days earlier, President James K. Polk had announced in his annual message to Congress that, “Recent discoveries render probable that these (gold) mines are more extensive and valuable than was anticipated.” This statement combined with the display of a box of gold Secretary of War, W.L. Marcy’s, office set off a frenzy of interest.

 

War Secretary Marcy sent a letter to Mint Director R. M. Patterson in which he asked to the director to convert the almost 231 ounces of gold into two gold medals that were to be awarded to Mexican War heroes, Generals Zackary Taylor and Winfield Scott, one or two small gold bars, and some quarter eagles with a distinguishing mark. Marcy anticipated that some people would like to have a sample from the first gold shipment from California that was delivered to the Philadelphia mint. He anticipated that citizens would be willing to trade an ordinary piece of gold to obtain the quarter eagles at face value. As it happened a second gold shipment from California arrived a short time after Lieutenant Loeser delivered his chest. Gold from that second shipment would be used to produce the two medals that would be awarded to Taylor and Scott.

 

In the mean time the Philadelphia mint personnel began their assignment. As was quite often the case the California gold contained silver that had to be parted from the body of the ore. After that the gold was alloyed with copper, formed into ingots and rolled into sheets from which the planchets were cut. After the coins were struck, there was one more step. Using the obverse coin die as an anvil, each coin was counterstamped with the letters “CAL.” above the eagle on the reverse. The use of the obverse die as an anvil prevented the flat spot that would have resulted had the counterstamp been applied on a flat surface.

 

As the year came to a close, Secretary Marcy was becoming impatient with the time it was taking to produce the quarter eagles. He sent his chief clerk, Archibald Campbell to Philadelphia to investigate the situation. Marcy stated that if quarters were ready, the mint personnel could hand them over to Campbell. Campbell returned to Washington empty handed.

 

On January 5, 1849 Mint Director Patterson sent Secretary Marcy a letter that would confirm the importance of the 1848 CAL. quarter eagles for generations of coin collectors. Patterson stated that during the normal course of business the mint would have supplied the quarter eagles to a depositor as soon as the facility received the gold. In this case, however, March had requested that the same gold that had been deposited be used in the coins. This request had created the delay. The need to part the silver from the gold and apply the CAL. counterstamp had prolonged the process. At long last the coins were ready for delivery.

 

Although the mint did not record the mintage for the 1848 CAL. gold coins, it has been estimated from the available evidence 1,389 pieces were produced. Although a small number of the coins were saved, the vast majority of them went into circulation. It has been estimated that less than 200, perhaps no more than 160, of these coins survive today. Among that group less than 40 could graded Mint State.

 

Today the 1848 CAL. quarter eagle is one of the most desired of U.S. coins. Many numismatists view it as the first United States commemorative coin because it marked the receipt of the first shipments of gold from California to a United States mint. In addition the coin does not just commemorate that event; it is made from the actual gold that was shipped to the mint. No other U.S. commemorative coin has such a close of a relationship to the event that it marks.

 

 

[BillJones]

Just to add a little something. Here is an example of the Winfield Scott medal in bronze that was awarded to him in gold. It's no wonder that they could not use the "CAL." gold for this and the Zachary Taylor pieces. This piece is 90 mm (about 3.5 inches) diameter and about a quarter of an inch thick. It is a massive medal.

 

[RWB]

Excellent example of this coin!

[bsshog40]

Not much room to put CAL on the reverse of that medal anyway. Very Nice!!

[Hard Times]

My favorite coin, you scored well on an amazing example Bill. Congrats. Someday maybe......

[rrantique]

Awesome coin and Medal. (thumbs u

[nunfa0]

Great stuff Bill and what a wonderful piece of history to own!!

[Desert Gold]

Boy that is a great looking coin! Also, what a great piece of history.