The Origin of the O Mintmark
With the passage of the Coinage Act of 1792, the United States had established its first mint in Philadelphia. While this single mint had been sufficient for thirteen states, by the 1830s the country’s expansion had pushed the Mint’s capabilities to the brink. In a time before railroads, automobiles, or aircraft, coinage and bullion were too heavy to transport efficiently. When gold was discovered in several locations throughout the American South, the need for branch mints became an absolute necessity.
