Most do not know that during Colonial US times a “rock” was discovered used as a doorstop in 1799 at the first gold mine in the US at Mecklenburg County (present day Charlotte, NC) The first piece of gold found near this mine,by a boy of about twelve years old the son of John Reed the proprietor of the Reed Gold mine. The discovery was accidental: The boy in the company of his brother and sister went fishing in a small stream, called Meadow Creek and saw a yellow substance shining in the water. He went in and picked it up, and found it to be some kind of metal, and carried it home. Mr. Reed examined it but it was an unknown type in this part of the country at the time. Mr. Reed kept the piece for several years on his house floor, as a door stop. In 1802, he went to the market and showed it to a jeweler who immediately told him that it was gold. He asked Mr. Reed to leave it with him and that he would flux it. When Mr. Reed returned he was presented with a large bar of gold about six or eight inches long. The jeweler asked Mr. Reed what he would take for the bar. Not knowing the value he asked $3.50 and sold it. In 1803 Mr. Reed and some partners found the same type of “rock” a gold chunk weighing 26 pounds. It turned out the the entire subsurface of this creek was very rich in gold. Even so the first mint to certify this gold was not the US, but a private firm known for probity and specificity certifying quality. These coins minted are extremely valuable and were preferred for years vs. Union or Confederate gold (bypassing governments who played around with values as was suspected then in mid 1800s).
Fascinating bit of US money history- a gold block used for a doorstop. Stuff of dreams— like this chunk of Amber. Amazing Nature.
Fascinating....................
the historic Bechtler Mint in Rutherfordton, NC [private mint]