5 Dollars - Oregon Exchange Company

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.