This Day in American History

January 15, 1782 – Superintendent of Finance Robert Morris, signer of the Declaration of Independence and financier of the American Revolution, reported to Congress, requesting authority to establish a national mint and proposing that coinage costs be borne by users of the service.

During the Revolution, Morris’s loan of $10,000 enabled George Washington to hold his army together long enough to win the battles of Trenton and Princeton. His ownership of privateer ships that preyed on British shipping attracted war profiteering from critics such as Thomas Paine, forcing him endure an inquiry by the Continental Congress before he was finally acquitted. Yet, when the young American government encountered a crisis with the collapse of public credit, Morris agreed to accept two of the newly created executive offices of the young government, Finance and Marine.

A few years after Morris’ proposal, Thomas Jefferson seconds the notion. It wasn’t until the nation was reorganized and a new Congress seated, however, that the proposal for a mint began to take serious form. Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton (Washington’s second choice for the job, suggested by Morris after he himself turned down the offer) placed the proposal before Congress. The act was finally passed in 1792.

Morris continued to serve to occupy a place of prominence in the new government – including signing the Constitution and serving as U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania. But his wild land speculations proved his undoing. Just like fellow Pennsylvania and signer of the Declaration, James Wilson, Morris was hounded into prison for payment of debts in his final years. He is buried in the graveyard of Christ Church in Philadelphia, next to his wife and brother-in-law, Bishop William White.