Mint Act of 1792
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On April 2, 1792, Congress created the United States Mint through the Mint Act of 1792. This revolutionary piece of legislation set forth crucial regulations for a United States mint and what it was to produce. Although some of the provisos were adjusted as time went by, the majority of the rules specified in this Act remained in effect for many decades. Essentially, it provided the basic framework on which all subsequent coinage production was based. While the first draft of the Act stipulated that all coins would employ a portrait of the president on the obverse, the final version called for an image emblematic of liberty. The Mint Act of 1792 also authorized construction of a mint building in Philadelphia, the nation's capital. This was the first federal building erected under the United States Constitution. Mint director David Rittenhouse laid the building's cornerstone on July 31st, amidst much excitement.
Also in 1792, An Act to Provide For a Copper Coinage was signed into law by President George Washington, on May 8, 1792. This legislation resulted in the birth of the copper penny, from which descends today's one cent piece. The Act also stipulated that "the director of the mint... be authorized to contract for and purchase a quantity of copper, not exceeding one hundred and fifty tons... to be coined at the mint into cents and half-cents... and be paid into the treasury of the United States, thence to issue into circulation." Furthermore, "no copper coins or pieces whatsoever except the said cents and half-cents, shall pass current as money, or shall be paid, or offered to be paid or received in payment for any debt, demand, claims, matter or thing whatsoever."
The 1792 Mint and Copper Coinage Acts of 1792 spawned the coins still used today. Although modern day coins do not resemble the crude and simple patterns of 1792, they are nevertheless direct descendants.
