This document is a certificate appointing Henry Voigt to the post of Chief Coiner at the Philadelphia Mint and bears the signature of George Washington dated January 29, 1793.
Voigt was a Philadelphia watchmaker and machinist who, prior to his stint as Chief Coiner, helped develop the first commercially viable steam boat in the United States. He is credited with designing some of the first United States coins.
The Philadelphia Mint was established in 1792 within the State Department and was responsible for the engraving of coinage dies; the manufacture of minor coins, medals, and working dies; the manufacture of mechanical apparatus, such as coinage presses and scales, and of certain supplies; and the collecting of “specimen” coins to add to the collection in the Cabinet Room of gold, silver, and base metal coins of different countries.
