feb 12, 1873 - Signs the Coinage Act (17 Stat 424) establishing the mint as a bureau of the Treasury Department and specifying details about official coinage. Controversially, the Act did not authorize a silver dollar for domestic use (although it did authorize smaller coins—50-cents, 25-cents, and 10-cents, and a so-called “trade dollar”). The Act limited the legal tender use of silver to transactions not exceeding $5.00 in any one payment. Because of the limitations on silver, the Act became known as “The Crime of ’73.”
Added to timeline:
Date:
feb 12, 1873
Now
~ 152 years ago