The United States Mint Carson City, Nevada
Carson City, Carson City, Nevada
Marker Inscription
The United States Mint Carson City, Nevada. The original Carson City building is a formal balanced, sandstone block edifice. Two stories high with a centrally located cupola. The sandstone blocks were quarried at the Nevada State Prison.On March 3, 1862, Congress passed a bill establishing a branch mint in the Territory of Nevada.The output of the Comstock Lode coupled with the high bullion transportation costs to San Francisco proved the necessity of a branch in Nevada.From its opening in 1870 to the closing of the coin operations in 1893, coinage amounted to $49,274,434.30.
Erected by Nevada State Historic Preservation Office
The Story
Congress authorized a branch mint in the Territory of Nevada on March 3, 1862, spurred by the flood of silver from the Comstock Lode and the high cost of shipping bullion to San Francisco. The balanced, two-story sandstone building—its blocks quarried at the Nevada State Prison—opened in 1870 and struck coins until 1893, producing more than $49 million in coinage. Its famous 'CC' mint mark became prized by collectors.
Why it matters
The Carson City Mint turned Nevada's silver directly into the nation's money, a concrete link between a Western mining boom and the money in American pockets.
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Related events
- · Opening of the Carson City Mint, 1870
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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