Hobbies And Interests
Setting the Stage
The discovery of gold in 1848 at California's Sutter's Mill, near the town of Colona, triggered the biggest gold rush the United States has ever seen. Upwards of 300,000 people emigrated to California, either by boat or across land by covered wagon, hoping to find their fortune. These "49ers," as they were called in reference to the migration's peak year, received something of a rude awakening when they arrived in the Golden State. The influx of so many people, so fast---the population of San Francisco, for example, grew from 1,000 in 1848 to 25,000 in 1850---left existing settlements unprepared, and living conditions for the newcomers were often squalid. Food and clothing was in short supply, and while merchants eagerly set up shop to cater to the crowds of immigrants, the next problem that emerged was too little currency to feed the booming new economy.
Gold Everywhere
The one thing that was not in short supply was gold. Billions of dollars worth of gold was mined in the early years of the Gold Rush. The lack of small-denomination coins prompted people to make transactions using gold nuggets, gold flakes and even gold dust.
Minting Money
By 1852 some Gold Rush entrepreneurs, primarily jewelers, began making small gold coins. For four years, they produced thousands of quarters, half dollars and dollars that fed the burgeoning economy. Round or octagonal in shape, these coins come in hundreds of varieties, and today are highly prized by collectors. Among the collectible coins from this period that have been cataloged today are octagonal quarters made by the firms Frontier, Deviercy &Co. and Antoine Louis Nouizillet &Co., each with "1/4 Dollar" engraved on the back, and round half dollars produced by Joseph Bros., the sons of a famous English silversmith.
The Second Period
In 1854 the federal government opened a new mint in San Francisco, primarily to serve the needs of the California miners. But that didn't end the story of the California fractional gold coins, at least not completely. Production of the first wave of California fractional coins wound down significantly as the new Mint opened and began producing federal coinage, and effectively ended in 1856. But three years later a second wave of California fractional gold coins began to appear, this time with less gold content than the face value. These coins were primarily made by jewelers as souvenirs of the gold fields and were thus rarely circulated; many of them survive in pristine condition. They were produced as late as 1889.
The Collectors Market
All told, more than 500 varieties of California fractional gold coins from both the first and second production periods have been identified and cataloged. Original coins from the first period sell for upwards of $300 to $400, while coins from the second period fetch about half that amount. Many California fractional gold coins were subsequently turned into jewelry, and specimens with holes in the them or soldering marks around the edges frequently pop up on auction sites for as little as $50. Prices are from 2009.