The first branch mint of the United States was opened in New Orleans in 1835. A Southern Mint was needed to convert gold from the first gold rush of the 1800's in Georgia and the Carolinas. Early U.S. Mints were nothing more than factories that took in raw gold and silver, refined the metals to a standard purity, then minted coins of a standard and weight. A fee was charged and the finished coins returned to the owner. American citizens often held little regard for paper money and mostly did trading with gold and silver coins. A Unique Southern Heritage The New Orleans Mint is unique in striking coins for the Union, the State of Louisiana, and the Confederacy. The New Orleans Mint issued a variety of coins during the Civil War including the 1861-O Seated Liberty Half Dollar. Before Lincoln Was Inaugurated As the year turned to 1861 President Lincoln was Inagurated. In the early days, the Philadelphia Mint created new coin dies with the year 1861 and an “O” Mint Mark on the reverse, the official designation of the New Orleans Mint. Official dies were only created in Philadelphia and shipped out to branch mint in New Orleans, Dahlonega, and Charlotte. Mint Officials Were Bean Counters Employees of the mint were extremely diligent in accounting for every ounce of silver bullion that arrived at the mint and for every silver coin that left the New Orleans Mint. For that reason, detailed records exist for mintages and dates of all coins produced in New Orleans. In early January, while the United States controlled the New Orleans Mint, 330,000 1861-O Seated Liberty Half Dollars were minted. January 26, 1861- Louisiana Secedes After Lincoln was sworn into office, the Southern Rebellion begain. On January 26, 1861 the State of Louisiana seceded from the United States. They immediately seized control of the bullion, coin presses, dies, and mint personnel at the U.S. Mint. Shortly thereafter, work at the New Orleans Mint continued. While the State of Lousiana was in control, they minted 1,240,000 1861-O Halves. Feb 4, 1861 - Louisiana joined the Confederacy Control of the New Orleans Mint was turned over to the Confederate soldiers. While the Confederate States of America were in control, a lower mintage of 962,633 of the 1861-O Halves were struck. In the past, certain designations appeared on certified coins which implied that the 1861-O Half Dollars were struck during the Confederacy years. But, until this shipwreck find, no PCGS or NGC coins ever fully identified to collectors that the coins were struck by the "Confederate States of America." In 1862, Union Gunboats Took Back New Orleans from the Rebels. One of their first tasks was to get all of the gold and silver out of the Mint vaults and ship it back to Northern banks. After retaking the mint, no coins were struck in New Orleans until much later. Why Were Coins on a Ship Headed from New York to New Orleans? Let’s move ahead to 1865. The Civil War ended in the defeat of the South. But New Orleans, under Union control had flourished. The South was in desperate need of trade goods, clothing, food, and hard currency after the Civil War. That's why some $400,000 in hard currency was being shipped aboard the sidewheel paddlewheeler the S.S. Republic. The Confederate Paper Dollars were deemed worthless in 1865. The Union Greenbacks were also shunned in the South. Foreign trade ships arriving in port, often demanded payment in gold or silver coins. If a trading company accepted U.S. Dollars at all, they were often discounted by 20 to 30%. An imported item one could buy for $100 in gold would cost $120 to $130 if you paid in paper currency. Merchants and bankers needed real, hard currency to get the South's economy going again. That meant silver coins and gold coins to conduct trade along the Mississippi River, in Texas, with Mexico, and South America. As the first 1861-O Mint Half Dollars to receive the official NGC designations of "Confederate States of America" and "S.S. Republic" these coins are sure to be highly sought-after by collectors for many generations to come. |
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