During the 1780s, the United States slowly pulled itself out of the economic doldrums created by the excess of paper money issued during the Revolutionary War. It was some time before coined money began to circulate widely in the major cities due to many people having lost heavily when the Continental currency imploded at war’s end.
It was widely realized that a stable currency of the precious metals, gold and silver, was necessary for economic progress, but this was easier said than done. The first attempt was made by Finance Minister Robert Morris in 1783 with the Nova Constellatio patterns, but the resulting scheme was so complex that it proved unworkable.
By early 1784, Congressman Thomas Jefferson had devised a much better system based on the Spanish dollar, and it was in fact adopted by the Confederation Congress during legislative sessions of 1785 and 1786. Although well thought out, it too failed, this time because the Confederation did not have the necessary funds to establish a mint and coinage.
In 1787 the Confederation government, mistakenly called “Federal” in current numismatic references, contracted with a private firm to strike the well-known Fugio cents. The affair was riddled with corrupt practices and bribery and did little to provide coins for the marketplaces.
The new federal government began operations in April 1789, and it would be only a matter of time before the first Congress under the Constitution of 1787 tackled the thorny question of a national monetary system. In March 1790, Congress formally asked Treasury Secretary
