Mormon Gold - One of the richest gold discoveries
of during the time of the California Gold Rush was at Mormon
Island, downstream from Sutter’s Mill on the American
River. James Marshall and Sam Brannan were Mormon “Forty-Niners”
who were involved in the actual discovery of gold. In 1848
Brigham Young decided to create a distinctive coinage for
the Mormon Territory. He met with John Kay, who had worked
at a private mint in England, to set up a process for smelting
oar and coining gold. Brigham Young and Kay created the
devices and inscriptions for the new coinage. They were
engraved by Robert Campbell and Kay.
The obverse devices included the three pointed
Phrygian Crown, the emblem of Mormon priesthood, above the
All-Seeing Eye. The inscription “Holiness to the Lord”
is from the Old Testament and was originally intended for
engraving on sacred jewels of the Hebrews. The reverse devices
included the clasped hands for friendship, and G.S.L.C.P.G.
meaning “Great Salt Lake City Pure Gold.” (It
is interesting to note that none of the gold actually came
from Salt Lake City. Until 1860 all bullion came from California.
The 1860 bullion came from Colorado.) The words PURE GOLD
were written out on the ten dollar piece instead of the
initials. The Salt Lake City minters called their coins
The first name of the Mormon Territory was
the State of Deseret meaning the State
of the Honeybee. Beginning in 1849, Mormon gold was
minted in a small adobe building in Salt Lake City, Utah.
It was actually the home of Dr. William Sharp. Brigham Young
initiated the coinage and personally supervised the mint.
Most Mormon gold coinage was light in weight and low in
fineness. When they reached non-Mormon territories know
as “Gentile” areas, the coins became objects
of contempt as much as polygamy was. No doubt both contributed
to federal opposition to the Mormons. Considering that most
of their coins had a quite low fineness, it is ironic that
their church sponsored issues were inscribed PURE GOLD.
Because of its substandard weight and fineness, most of
the early Mormon coinage was melted outside Mormon territory.
Bankers accepted them with a twenty-five percent discount.
To remedy this situation, Young ordered new coins for 1850.
They were alloyed with silver and redesigned. However, by
that time Mormon coinage had such a poor reputation, the
new issues were not accepted and also wound up in the melting
In 1854 the Board of Regents of the University
of Deseret, which is now the University of Utah, adopted
a phonetic alphabet. At the behest of President Brigham
Young, President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints, George D. Watt developed this new phonetic alphabet
to help simplify the spelling of English. Among other works,
the entire Book of Mormon was published in Deseret in the
1860’s. Despite being promoted by Young and used by
the Deseret News, the new alphabet did not gain wide acceptance.
It fell into disuse after his death in 1877.
In 1861, Governor Alfred Cumming, a Democrat
appointed by President James Buchanan to replace Brigham
Young, prohibited the use of Mormon gold despite the fact
that the five dollar piece is reported to have net weight
of one-third gram more gold than the Federal coinage of
the time. Cumming served at the governor of the Territory
of Utah from 1858 to 1861.
All of the 1849 to 1850 coinage use the
same main devices, the three pointed crown above the All
Seeing Eye on the obverse and the clasped hands on the reverse.
The 1850 five dollar piece added a halo above the eye. The
1860 five dollar coin’s obverse depicts a recumbent
lion facing left, symbol of power and protection, with the
Deseret alphabet inscription “Holiness to the Lord”
surrounding the lion and the date below. The reverse shows
a beehive made of straw protected by an eagle. The beehive
was a holy symbol of industriousness and a favorite device
of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young. Surrounding the eagle
is the inscription DESERET ASSAY OFFICE PURE GOLD with the
denomination 5 D. below.
All Mormon gold coins are rare and sought
by collectors and specialists. In their combined population
reports the major grading services show for the 1849 issues
the following numbers: $2.50 44, $5.00 150, $10.00 4, $20.00
17. For the 1850 $5.00 they show 100, and for the 1860 $5.00
they show 68. These numbers do not account for crossovers