A bit of history about the Smithsonian - Smithson's Sovereigns

[Zebo]

For those of you who do not know the story - information from the Smithsonian Numismatic Collection web-site. May be of interest to those who collect sovereigns, US gold eagles or enjoy the Smithsonian.

 

The 1838 Sovereign was used to convey James Smithson's bequest to the United States for the creation of the Smithsonian Institution. James Smithson was born in 1765 as the

illegitimate son of Sir Hugh Smithson, later known as Sir Hugh Percy, Baronet, 1st Duke of

Northumberland, K.G., and Elizabeth Hungerford Keate.

 

Elizabeth Keate had been married to James Macie, and so Smithson first bore the name of

James Lewis Macie. His mother later married Mark Dickinson, by whom she had another son.

When she died in 1800, he and his half-brother inherited a sizable estate. He changed his name

at this time from "Macie" to "Smithson."

 

James Smithson died June 27, 1829, in Genoa, Italy. His will left his fortune to his nephew, son of his half-brother, but stipulated that if that nephew died without children (legitimate or illegitimate), the money should go "to the United States of America, to found at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men."

 

The nephew, Henry Hungerford Dickinson, died without heirs in 1835, and Smithson's bequest

was accepted in 1836 by the United States Congress. Smithson never visited the United States,

and the reason for his generous bequest is unknown. The gift was the foundation grant for the

Smithsonian Institution.

 

The Smithson bequest consisted of 104,960 gold sovereigns. Presumably they all bore the head of the new Queen Victoria, who had acceded to the throne in 1837.

 

The United States insisted on new sovereigns rather than circulated ones for a very practical

reason: the United States would get more gold that way. All but two coins were melted down,

reminted as American coins, and spent. The last two originals are in the Smithsonian collection.

 

The gold British sovereigns that James Smithson bequeathed to the United States were melted

down and re-struck as American coins. Some of the gold went into the reissue of the ten-dollar

piece, or eagle. There were other factors at work, of course, including two Acts of Congress that

reduced the weight and fineness of all United States gold coins, in an effort to keep them in

circulation.

 

The resumption of eagle coinage was ordered in July 1838, and between seven and eight thousand of the coins, the first eaglesstruck since 1804, were minted at the beginning of December. Smithson’s legacy played a role: the knowledge that a massive amount of bullion was on its way across the Atlantic fostered the decision to resume the eagle, the largest existing American denomination.

 

[RWB]

These letters might be of interest. The first shows that none of the new-design Eagles were made with Smithsonian gold, and that all the gold was struck during September, 1838. The second states the dollar value of the legacy and questions why the Mint has not been credited.

 

[RG104 entry 216 vol 03]

 

Mint of the United States

September 24, 1838

 

Hon. Levi Woodbury,

Secretary of the Treasury

 

Sir,

I have the honor to state that the whole of the Smithsonian legacy brought to the Mint by Mr. Rush at the beginning of this month, is now in American gold coins.

 

The head die for the new Eagle is now complete, and the reverse will be finished this week, so that I hope to be able, very soon, to send you specimens of this coin. We shall have plenty of gold to supply the number you may want. We have had large deposits of bullion, and are fully occupied.

 

Very Respectfully,

R.M. Patterson

Director

 

************

 

Mint of the United States

November 5, 1838

 

Hon. Levi Woodbury,

Secretary of the Treasury

 

Sir,

In a letter of the 20th of July, you state that Mr. Rush had been instructed to transfer the amount of the Smithsonian legacy to the Mint, to be deposited to the Credit of the Treasurer of the United States, and you further say that “as soon as the exact value shall be ascertained, and returned to the Treasurer of the United States, by the Mint, a transfer draft will be issued to place the amount in the Mint, under the provisions of the 12th Section of the Act of the 23rd of June, 1836.”

 

The amount was deposited by Mr. Rush according to your instruction, and on the 3rd of September, the net value was found to be $508,318.46, as reported to you at the time, and this amount was duly placed, in our books, to the credit of the Treasurer of the United States.

 

The last step proposed by you, namely the transfer to the Mint, under the deposit Act of June 1836, has not yet been taken, and I have deemed it proper to call your attention to it. The money is at present in a somewhat anomalous position.

 

Very Respectfully,

R.M. Patterson

Director

 

[Zebo]

Very interesting. These letters add some clarity to the story. I am trying to determine if the two 1838 sovereigns in the national collection are actually from the Smithson gift. As I read the web-site's documentation - it appears that they were part of the gift. I am not sure if there is proof of that, however and am corresponding with the Smithsonian on the matter.

[RWB]

Well, consider that the Smithsonian Institution did not exist in 1838, so custody of the two coins had to reside someplace. It is also very possible that the SI coins are simply two of the same date of the gift.

 

Let me know if you need PDF files of the originals for your discussions with SI staff.

[Zebo]

Thanks - I will and I suspect you and I are correct about them holding two of the same date, but not from the actual gift.

[juliacoins-migration]

Thanks its really interesting for me