Coinage Act of 1792

The Coinage Act of 1792 established a national mint located in Philadelphia. Congress chose decimal coinage in parts of 100, and set the U.S. dollar to the already familiar Spanish milled dollar and its fractional parts (half, quarter, eighth, sixteenth). This resulted in coins of the following metals and denominations:

• Copper: half cent and cent
• Silver: half dime, dime, quarter, half dollar, and dollar
• Gold: quarter eagle ($2.50), half eagle ($5), and eagle ($10)

In 1792, during construction of the new Mint, 1,500 silver half dimes were made in the cellar of a nearby building. These half dimes were probably given out to dignitaries and friends and not released into circulation. The Mint delivered the nation’s first circulating coins on March 1, 1793: 11,178 copper cents.

These new cents caused a bit of a public outcry. They were larger than a modern quarter, a bulky size for small change. The image of Liberty on the obverse showed her hair steaming behind her and her expression “in a fright.” The reverse featured a chain of 15 links, similar to the Fugio cent. However, some people felt that it symbolized slavery instead of unity of the states. The Mint quickly replaced the chain with a wreath, and a couple months later designed a new version of Liberty.

Although individual states were no longer authorized to produce coins, legislation temporarily allowed certain foreign coins to continue to circulate until the Mint released enough coins to handle the country’s needs. Source