Denver Mint | |
 The Denver Mint in 2007 | |
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 Interactive map showing the location of Denver Mint | |
| Location | West Colfax Avenue and Delaware Street,Denver,Colorado |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 39°44′23″N104°59′30.17″W / 39.73972°N 104.9917139°W /39.73972; -104.9917139 |
| Built | 1897 |
| Architect | James Knox Taylor |
| Architectural style | Late 19th and 20th century revivals |
| Part of | Civic Center Historic District (ID74002348) |
| NRHP reference No. | 72000270[1] |
| CSRHP No. | 5DV.164 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | February 1, 1972 |
| Designated CP | February 27, 1974 |
TheDenver Mint is a branch of theUnited States Mint that struck its first coins on February 1, 1906.[2] The mint is still operating and producing coins for circulation, as well asmint sets andcommemorative coins. Coins produced at the Denver Mint bear aDmint mark (as did theDahlonega Mint, which closed before the Denver branch opened). The Denver Mint is the single largest producer of coins in the world.[3]
The predecessors of the Denver Mint were the men of Clark, Gruber and Company. During thePikes Peak Gold Rush, they coined gold dust brought from the gold fields by the miners. In 1858, Austin M. Clark, Milton E. Clark and Emanuel Henry Gruber founded a brokerage firm inLeavenworth, Kansas, and then established an office in Denver at the beginning of theColorado Gold Rush. Desiring to save on shipping and insurance costs associated with shipping gold back east, the firm opened a private mint. On July 25, 1860, the mint opened in a two-story brick building on the corner of Market and 16th Streets, minting $10 gold pieces at the rate of "fifteen or twenty coins a minute". "On the face is a representation of the peak, its base surrounded by a forest of timber and 'Pikes Peak Gold' encircling the summit. Immediately under its base is the word 'Denver', and beneath it 'Ten D.'. On the reverse is the American Eagle encircled by the name of the firm 'Clark, Gruber & Co.', and beneath the date, '1860'."[4]: 26–27
A $20 gold coin was added, "the weight will be greater, but the value the same as the United States coin of like denomination". A $5 and a $2.5 gold coin were added, with production reaching $18,000 per week. On the front was the "head of the Goddess of Liberty surrounded by thirteen stars, with "Clark & Company" in thetiara. "Pikes's Peak Gold, Denver" was on the other side, with "5D." or "2 1/2 D."[4]: 27
In the almost three years of operation, they minted $594,305 worth of Pike's Peak gold in the form of gold coins. Additionally, they purchased 77,000 troy ounces of raw gold, and shipped "large amounts of dust" to thePhiladelphia Mint. The building, assaying and minting equipment was formally bought by theUS Treasury in April 1863. Clark, Gruber & Co. remained a bank until bought by the First National Bank of Denver in 1865.[4]: 27
Established by anAct of Congress on April 21, 1862, the United States Mint at Denver opened for business in late 1863 as a United StatesAssay Office. Operations began in the facilities of Clark, Gruber and Company, located at 16th and Market Streets and acquired by the government for $25,000.
Unlike Clark, Gruber and Company, though, theDenver plant performed no coinage ofgold as first intended.[4]: 77 One reason given by the Director of the Mint for the lack of coinage at Denver was, "…the hostility of the Indian tribes along the routes, doubtless instigated by rebel emissaries (there being aCivil War) and bad white men."
Gold and nuggets brought there by miners from the surrounding area were accepted by the Assay Office for melting, assaying, and stamping of castgold bars. The bars were then returned to the depositors as imparted bars stamped with the weight and fineness of the gold. Most of the gold came from the rich beds of placer gold found in the streams and first discovered in 1858, the same yearDenver was founded.
When the supply of gold was exhausted from thestreams, the emphasis turned tolode mining, uncovering veins of ore with a high percentage ofgold andsilver. By 1859, the yearly value of the gold and silver deposited at the Assay Office was over $5.6 million. During its early years as an Assay Office, the Denver plant was the city's most substantial structure.
The United States Treasury did not expand its smelting and refining operations at the same rate as the discovery and production of gold. In 1872 a group of businessmen led byJudge Hiram Bond (formerly one of the largest brokers on theNew York Gold Exchange), Joseph Miner and Denver MayorJoseph E. Bates set up a firmDenver Smelting and Refining Works which built an independent complementary plant which processed ore into ingots which were then assayed, weighed and stamped by the Denver Mint.
There was new hope for branch mint status whenCongress provided for the establishment of a mint at Denver for gold and silver coin production. The site for the new mint atWest Colfax and Delaware streets was purchased on April 22, 1896, for approximately $60,000. Construction began in 1897.
Appropriations to complete and equip the plant were insufficient, and the transfer of assay operations to the new building were delayed until September 1, 1904. Coinage operations finally began on February 1, 1906, advancing the status of the Denver facility to Branch Mint. In addition, before the new machinery to be used at the Mint was installed for use, it was first sent to theSt. Louis Exposition of 1904 for display. Silver coins were minted in Denver for the first time in 1906. During the first year, 167 million coins were produced, including $20 gold (double eagle) coins, $10 gold (eagle) coins, $5 gold (half eagle) coins, and assorted denominations of silver coins.
The mint was individually listed on theNational Register of Historic Places in 1972. It was further included as acontributing building in the listing ofCivic Center Historic District in 1974.[1][5][6]
Today, the Denver Mint produces commemorative coins, coin dies and uncirculated coin sets. It has a production capacity of more than 50 million coins a day and roughly 350 employees.[7]
The current building, constructed 1904, is based on thePalazzo Medici-Riccardi inFlorence, Italy.James Knox Taylor was the supervising architect inWashington, D.C., but the structure was designed byTracy and Swartwout ofNew York City.[8]
The structure's first level usesPikes Peak granite, while the second floor is sided with gray graniteashlar. The granitecornice of the building is bracketed above a decoratedfrieze, andLudowici tile covers the building's roof.[8][9]
The Mint's lobby featuresmurals byVincent Aderente that represent mining, manufacturing, and commerce.[8]
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