About John Parsons and Company Colorado Gold Minting
Gold was discovered not only in California but also in Oregon and Colorado. In 1850, gold was discovered in Park County, which is about 150 miles southeast of Denver, Colorado. Miners came in droves to the towns of Tarryall and Hamilton, and the populations of both towns swelled. In addition to the influx of prospectors, there was a growing need for circulating coinage as commerce expanded rapidly in isolated mining towns. Federal mints were not yet established in the territory, leading to a proliferation of private mints and territorial gold issues.
Dr. John Parsons, originally from Indiana, came to Colorado (circa 1858–1859) to establish a minting facility to meet the need for coinage, and Parsons & Co. was founded in 1861. He ordered coining equipment and had several sets of dies created, and by the end of June 1861, Parsons & Co. were preparing to strike gold coins. However, there was no recorded permanent location for his business. It is believed that his “mint” was located in the back of a wagon.
John Parsons and Company minted $2.50 and $5.00 gold coins in 1861. But this experiment was short-lived, as they struck coins for only a few months that year. No one knows exactly how many gold coins J. Parsons & Company actually struck, and few examples remain today.
John Parsons & Co. $2.50 Gold Coins
The $2.50 gold coins have a quartz stamping mill, a tool used by miners to crush ore on the obverse. Above the machine were the words “J. PARSONS & Co.” and below was the Spanish word for gold, “ORO.” The reverse showed a crude depiction of a federal eagle with a shield-shaped body, complete with arrows and a branch in its talons. Around the periphery was “PIKE’S PEAK GOLD” and the denomination “2 ½ D.”
John Parsons & Co. $5.00 Gold Coins
Parsons also struck a $5.00 Gold Coin, which was significantly larger than the $2.50 but with the same exact design, except that the denomination was changed from “2 ½ D.” to “FIVE D.”
In October 1861, Parsons likely struck fewer than $500 in face-value coins. The Phillips Lode, source of most of the gold he had previously mined, was now exhausted. The depletion of gold at the Phillips Lode and the broader economic uncertainty of the time led John Parsons & Co. to close its doors after only a few months. Although the coins were anticipated by local merchants and saw limited acceptance, they were never formally assayed, and many were later melted.
Only 11-14 specimens of both denominations are known, making all of Parsons’s surviving gold coinage truly rare and reflected in their value. Coins infrequently come to market, and usually when they do, they draw great interest and strong bids at major coin auctions across the country. Expand your collection today and shop our assortment of pre-1933 U.S. gold coins.
