Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
5 Dollars - Oregon Exchange Company
| Issuer | Oregon Exchange Company |
|---|---|
| Year | 1849 |
| Type | Emergency coin |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | K.M.T.A.W.R.G.S T.O 1849 |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | 1849 |
| Additional information |
The Oregon Exchange Company was formed in Oregon City in early 1849 by a consortium of merchants — including Absalom Hedges and several associates — specifically to address the chaos caused by raw gold dust being used as currency in Pacific Northwest commerce. Weights varied, assays were unreliable, and merchants lost money on every transaction. The company purchased a small coining press and began striking pieces from California placer gold carried north by returning miners.
These are among the earliest private gold coins struck on the Pacific Coast. The dies were cut locally under frontier conditions, which accounts for the crude execution documented across the series.