J. J. Conway and Company & Minting Colorado Gold
J. J. Conway was a jeweler and watchmaker by trade, and he also dabbled in banking for a time in Colorado Territory. He formed a company to address the problems of gold miners who found gold dust in several areas of Colorado from 1859 to 1861; these miners needed someone to turn their gold dust into coinage they could use in commerce. J. J. Conway located his operations in Georgia Gulch, near Central City, in the heart of Colorado’s early gold-mining region west of Denver.
Conway valued the gold dust the miners brought to the company by weighing it and minting coins from it. The exact terms of exchange, assay standards, and weight/fineness yields varied. During his brief run in 1861, J. J. Conway & Company struck $2.50, $5.00, and $10.00 gold coins, which merchants, miners, and bankers needed. All three denominations were struck during the summer months of 1861, just as the Civil War was starting.
J. J. Conway & Company $2.50 Gold Coin
The $2.50 gold coin of J. J. Conway & Company was of simple design. The obverse was text with “J. J. CONWAY” at the top periphery and “& CO,” at the center of the obverse. The bottom periphery had the word “BANKERS” inscribed on it. “J J CONWAY” and “BANKERS” were separated by 2 six-pointed stars.
The reverse design featured a central vignette of a large, ornate “2 ½” with the words “PIKES PEAK” across the top periphery and “DOLL:S” across the bottom periphery. “PIKES PEAK” and “DOLL:S” were separated by two five-pointed stars.
J. J. Conway & Company $5.00 Gold Coin
The $5.00 denomination gold coin had a similar design. On the obverse, the difference is that there are 13 five-pointed stars encircling the words “& Co.”. On the reverse, the denomination had changed from “2 ½” to “5” and the two stars separating the words around the periphery have now been removed.
J. J. Conway & Company $10.00 Gold Coin
The $10.00 coin struck also had several minor differences. On the obverse, around the periphery were “J. J. CONWAY” and “BANKERS” separated by rosettes. There was also an inner circle in which “& CO.” was depicted. The 13 stars were removed from the obverse to represent the 13 colonies. The reverse had the denomination changed from “5” to “10”, and 13 six-pointed stars surrounded the numerical value.
The $10.00 gold coin is one of the rarest of all early Colorado gold coins, with only three known examples: two are in the Smithsonian collection, and one is privately owned. The coins were all struck in July and August of 1861, and by October, the J. J. Conway & Company mint was no more.
All surviving specimens, regardless of denomination, are rare. Expand your collection today and shop our assortment of pre-1933 U.S. gold coins.
