 An illustration of the first United States Mint building. |
People have been making coins for thousands of years. Long ago the very first mint was founded during the 600s AD in what is now a part of Turkey. Early Greek and Roman people, used coins in exchange for products such as food and clothing. The first mint in the United States was located in Boston, Massachusetts in 1652. According to the Articles of Confederation of 1781, the U.S. Congress and each state had the rights and powers to mint money and control its value. This did not work because the value of money was different in each state. Therefore, the United States Congress established the United States Mint on April 2, 1792 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This was the first federal building constructed after the Constitution was signed by the 13 colonies. The location of the mint was very convenient since Philadelphia was our nation's capital at that time (1790 to 1800). Originally coins were made from gold, silver, and copper at the mint. Our first president, George Washington, is believed to have given his own silver to the mint for coin production. We hope his wife, Martha, did not lose her favorite silver candlesticks! |