1851 $50 Lettered Edge Gold Slug

After gold was discovered in California in early 1848 coins became scarce, and most transactions took place with gold dust or nuggets. Federally issued coins were known to be of fair value relative to their stated worth, and a one ounce gold coin was worth $20. Compared to gold dust, which could be of varied fineness, and usually was valued at about $16 an ounce. Because of the premium value of coins over dust, coins were reserved primarily for banking, gambling and paying customs. These uses alone exhausted the regions supply of coins, and the lack of available coinage became a real economic drag by 1850. Numerous privately minted coins were trying to fill this void, but problems with limited production or questionable gold content kept demand for reliable coins at a premium. 

San Francisco's Merchants pressed to pass a bill for an official U.S. Mint in San Francisco, but instead Congress authorized Moffat & Company, under the direction of Augustus Humbert, to strike $50 ingots as an official Assayer of the United States, and that these coins would be legal tender for paying customs or any other obligation.  In February of 1851 newspapers in San Francisco announced that the United States Assay Office, under the direction of assayer Augustus Humbert, was accepting gold dust deposits to produce octagonal shaped 2 1/2 ounce ingots. 

Early slugs, like this one pictured required numerous hands-on steps to produce. First, the obverse Eagle with shield and reverse engine turned design were struck onto the gold octagonal ingot. Next, the gold's fineness was stamped onto the ribbon above the eagles wings. On this coin, the fineness is .880, however other lettered edge slugs have .887 fineness stamped. Additionally, a single punch with the numbers "50" were struck in font of the D below the eagles rock perch, indicating the $50 value. The next step in production was to strike the inscription located on the edge of the coin. On each of the 8 sides of these early slugs was punched the inscription: 1851/ AUGUSTUS / HUMBERT / UNITED / STATES / ASSAYER / OF GOLD / CALIFORNIA. It is this edge inscription which coin collectors refer to when they describe early slugs as having a "lettered edge". By 1852 slugs were made with reeded edges and required much less human touch to create, as most design elements were stamped by machine.

By 1854 Northern California had grown and Congress authorized the San Francisco branch mint.. As Federally issued coins began to be struck people turned in their privately minted gold coins, including many slugs, to be recoined into federal $5, $10 and $20 pieces. This mass melting of earlier gold rush era coinage is part of why these relics of the past are rare today. The $50 slug's large size and octagonal shape make it unique in United States numismatics, and today these slugs are among the most famous of all California Gold Rush monies.

Disclaimer: I do not own many of the coins pictured on this website. My modest collection is kept in a bank safe deposit box at all times. I do enjoy examining and studying these fascinating coins and artifacts. If you have quality scans of California gold rush coins, artifacts, or assay receipts, I would love to see them for possible inclusion on my web site with or without a photo credit. Please e-mail to goofyft@aol.com.