Miami Valley Coin Club

Carson City Mint

The Carson City Mint was established by Congress on March 3, 1863, to serve the coinage needs brought about by the Comstock Lode, the largest silver strike in the Nation’s history. The mint was based in Nevada and was build during the height of the silver boom. Groundbreaking ceremonies took place on July 18, 1866. The cornerstone for the new facility was laid on September 18, 1866, but the building was not completed until December 13, 1869. There were 57 issues of gold coins (3 denominations) and 50 issues of silver coins (8 denominations) from the Comstock Lode were minted between the years of 1870 and 1893. No coins were minted from the middle of 1885 to 1889, during President Grover Cleveland’s presidency.

Alfred B. Mullett was the architect who designed this mint after becoming the Supervising Architect for the Department of the Treasury. He also happens to be the same designer of the San Francisco Mint as well. The supervisor who overlooked the construction of Carson City Mint was Abraham Curry, who was well known as “The Father of Carson City”. The style of the building was of the Renaissance Revival and is made out of stone.

Between 1895 and 1933, Carson City mint became an official US Assay Office to help miners convert their ore into coins, ingots and bars. Eventually in 1939, the building was sold to the state of Nevada for $10,000 and has now become the Nevada State Museum.

Interesting Facts and Coin Statistics of the Carson City Mint

Total Number of Dimes: 20,912,588 ($2,091,259 face value)

Total Number of Twenty Cent Pieces: 143,290 ($28,658 face value)

Total Number of Quarters: 10,330,542 ($2,582,636 face value)

Total Number of Half Dollars: 105,307,627($2,653,814 face value worth)

Total Number of Dollars: 17,996,729 ($17,996,729 face value)

Total Number of $5 Gold Half Eagles: 709,617 ($3,548,085 face value)

Total Number of $10 Gold Eagles: 299,778 ($2,997,780 face value)

Total Number of $20 Gold Double Eagles: 864,128 ($17,282,560 face value)