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The thousands of coins carried aboard the Central America
in 1857 represent an illuminating cross-section of the minted currencies of the
time. In addition to European and privately minted coins, passengers carried a
modest amount of silver such as Mexican and Chilean pesos and Spanish pieces of
four.
Such a wide range of currencies was not unusual. When James
Marshall discovered gold at Sutter's Mill in 1848, California did not have a
branch mint. As the population of San Francisco exploded from just a few
hundred settlers to 25,000 gold-mad citizens in a matter of months, a monetary
system couldn't be developed fast enough. Not surprisingly, entrepreneurs were
among the first to fill the need for a dependable currency with privately
minted coins. The oldest California gold coins found aboard the Central America
were $10 gold pieces minted by Moffat & Company, one of the first and most
esteemed of the early private coiners of California. John Moffat, along with
his three partners and his machinery, set sail for the West Coast almost
immediately upon the news of the gold rush.
By August 1849, Moffat
& Company was issuing $5 and $10 gold coins bearing a bust of Liberty,
similar to the federal design but with the name "Moffat & Co" replacing the
word Liberty on her coronet. On the other side soared an eagle, accompanied by
the words SMV California Gold, 1849." The SMV stands for Standard Mint Value.
Not all the assayers were as honest as Moffat & Co, and there
were occasionally problems when some firms minted coins containing less than
their stated amount or purity of gold. In frustration, the public turned to
silver and to foreign coins on a limited basis.
 Despite several well-publicized scandals, including
the Baldwin & Company gold swindle of 1850, private coins continued to be
accepted in the absence of public issue. Without a way to verify the purity of
private coinage, however, a suspicious public increased the clamor for a branch
mint that would issue "real coins," preferably in the $2.50, $5, and $10
denominations required for daily commerce. On September 30, 1850, the United
States Congress established the US Assay Office in San Francisco. This was not
the full mint required to produce coins identical to US mint issue, but at
least it could mint provisional coins from the local alloy. Augustus Humbert, a
watchmaker from New York City, was named US Assayer; Moffat and Company
received the contract.
Unfortunately, the US government failed to
address the critical need for small commercial denominations and did not
authorize any that were lower than $50. The most commonly used government
denomination, Humbert's $50 octagonal "slug," was wildly unpopular. However,
the words "Augustus Humbert United States Assayer of Gold 1851" enscripted
around the edges to discourage made it "tamper evident," and the coin did
succeed in driving many of the debased private issues off the street.
But even this was a mixed blessing. The disappearance of these privately
minted coins made the smaller denominations even scarcer and depressed
commerce. Although it was the proper weight and purity, the $50 slug became so
undesirable that it eventually traded at a discount of $48, which was no
improvement over the earlier debased coinage.
Samuel Wass and Agoston
Molitor, Hungarian refugees and graduates of the esteemed School of the Mines
in Germany, capitalized on the $50 slug's unpopularity when they opened a gold
processing plant and assay office in San Francisco in October 1851. Wass,
Molitor & Company began to issue round $10 and $20 coins. During a later
coinage crisis, in 1855, the company produced the only circulating $50 coin
ever minted in California. An example appeared in one of the very first trays
of coins Nemo brought to the surface. The wide acceptance of all the Hungarian
assayers' issue is evident by the many other Wass, Molitor coins that were
possessed by the Central America passengers. In February 1852, the government
finally authorized the issue of $5 and $10 coins. John Moffat had sold his
interest in the company, but his partners, Curtis, Perry, and Ward, won the
contract and produced many of the $10 eagles so plentiful in the treasure. They
also produced half eagles and double eagles. When these lesser denominations
began to appear in the market, the $50 slug regained public favor because it
was useful for large purchases. Its unique octagonal shape became a symbol of
California coinage, and several of the slugs found their way on boards the
Central America. By 1854, the government established a full-fledged US Mint
offering coins struck from California gold. As the common currency of the day,
thousands of these government-issued coins were carried by passengers, as well.
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