In 2019, the San Francisco Historical Society relocated its headquarters to 608 Commercial Street. This property was the original site of the United States Assay Office starting in early 1852 and housed the first San Francisco Mint from 1854 to 1874. In its role as Assay Office and Branch Mint, 608 Commercial Street saw an astonishing quantity of gold and silver struck into coins. Today, some of these coins are among the most valuable numismatic objects in the world. Join David McCarthy for a talk about these coins and their stories.

Presented by David McCarthy, senior numismatist at Kagin’s Inc. and one of the world’s foremost experts on coinage of the U.S. gold rushes. His research won him the American Numismatic Association’s Numismatist of the Year Award in 2018. He has worked as a consultant with the U.S. Secret Service, as well as numerous banks, museums and other institutions. He has also been interviewed or profiled by NPR, the Associated Press, Fox News; and he has appeared as an expert on the History and National Geographic Channels.