"The Congress shall have the Power . . . To Coin Money."
(Constitution of the United States, Article I, Section 8.)
When the framers of the U.S. Constitution created a new government for their untried
Republic, they realized the critical need for a respected monetary system. Soon after
the Constitution's ratification, Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton personally
prepared plans for a national Mint. On April 2, 1792, Congress passed The Coinage Act,
which created the Mint and authorized construction of a Mint building in the nation's
capitol, Philadelphia. This was the first federal building erected under the Constitution.
David Rittenhouse
First Director of the United States Mint
President George Washington appointed Philadelphian David Rittenhouse, a leading American
scientist, as the first Director of the Mint. Under Rittenhouse, the Mint produced its
first circulating coins -- 11,178 copper cents, which were delivered in March 1793. Soon
after, the Mint began issuing gold and silver coins as well. President Washington, who
lived only a few blocks from the new Mint, is believed to have donated some of his own
silver for minting.
Discover more about the United States Mint’s rich history by visiting our
Timeline
,
Roles in History
and
Coin Production
sections of the website. In these sections you can find brief histories of coins, designs, events,
coin production and how the United States Mint has progressed through the centuries. For those interested
in a more in-depth look at the United States Mint’s history, visit our
Archives
section where you can find information and images relating to United States Mint coins, as well as legislation,
press releases and excerpts from past United States Mint annual reports.
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