HISTORY OF THE FIRST UNITED STATES MINT
From NBSwiki
The One Hundred Greatest Items Of United States Numismatic Literature Rank: Number 38
Clain-Stefanelli 12545, Davis 1013, Sigler 2452
The product of a vocational education with no substantial academic credentials, Stewart nevertheless loved history and genealogy and wrote widely on the subjects, focusing on southern New Jersey. His usual offering presented unexplored archival material, published with minimal analysis. The efforts were effectively self-funded – though many appear under the imprimatur of the Gloucester County (NJ) Historical Society, Stewart was, as Davis puts it, “the chief mover and shaker” of that New Jersey institution. History of the First United States Mint shines out from Stewart’s other work, for it combines archaeological excavation with archival research, and further, Stewart spent far longer on this work than on others, which were typically “hit and run” efforts quickly generated and dispensed. The five dollar issue price, “less than the actual expense of collecting and printing the material” (per a pre-publication circular), once again reflects Stewart’s labor of love. There are many unanswered questions in the book – Stewart probably didn’t know the answers himself – but acting as our “eyes and ears,” Stewart’s record of the First Mint property is the best we will ever have.
Prospectus
Photo courtesy of Wayne K. Homren Numismatic Library.
Camden, NJ: 1924
1pp
Octavo
1st Edition
Photo courtesy of Wayne K. Homren Numismatic Library.
STEWART, Frank H. HISTORY OF THE FIRST UNITED STATES MINT, ITS PEOPLE AND ITS OPERATIONS.
Camden, NJ: 1924
208pp, illustrated
Octavo
Hardbound: Red cloth, lettered in gilt
Limited to 500 copies.
1974 Reprint
Photo courtesy of Steve Shupe Numismatic Library.
Lawrence, MA: Quarterman, 1974
209pp
Octavo
Hardbound: Purple cloth, lettered in silver, dust jacket