Where Are All The Gold Coins?
Why were the gold coins melted? Nearly all gold coins minted from 1795 to 1834 had gold values in excess of their face value and profiteers were buying them directly from the mint to be melted and sold in Europe. The amount of gold in new gold coins was reduced stopping that problem. The result is that early American gold coins are extremely scarce to rare.
Franklin Roosevelt's Gold Confiscation of 1933 was the 2nd great gold meltdown and resulted in the end of circulation issue legal tender American gold coinage. In an effort to end what Roosevelt claimed was hoarding of legally owned gold he issued Presidential Executive Order 6102 forbidding the hoarding of gold coin, gold bullion and gold certificates...
Gold coinage or bullion in private hands was declared illegal and holders were required to redeem the gold to the government in exchange for other forms of currency. As soon as it was in their hands the federal government melted the gold and poured it into gold bars. Interestingly the price of gold had previously been mandated by the government at $20.67 an ounce. Once the gold had all been consolidated in government control they reset the price at $35 per ounce, immediately realizing a nearly doubling of the value of the gold it held. Gold was then regulated until January 1, 1975 when all restrictions on private ownership of gold and price controls ended.
Not all of the surviving pre-1933 coins are traded. Many are held in private collections and portfolios. All of this leaves fewer and fewer American gold coins for collectors each year.
When you are looking to add gold coins to your collection always buy the highest quality coin you can afford. Quality is definitely better than quantity in this case.
