Walter Breen
Likewise in the previously quoted Jefferson to Pinckney letter, Jefferson mentions the ordering of the presses and then merely states that Droz never showed up, again casting serious doubt that Droz supplied presses.
To this we can add the evidence in the historical records of the National Archives, including the Mint records and those of the State Department. There is no record whatsoever documenting the purchase or the arrival of presses from Droz or any other foreign source. (Based upon the research of both this author (Craig Sholley) and R. W. Julian. Julian checked the State Department records and the records of ships docking at Philadelphia for 1792 (personal communication, 1992 and 1996).
Furthermore, the Droz theory would have us believe that we imported two presses at great expense, neither of which was capable of striking our largest coin, the dollar-the Mint would have to order one from a domestic manufacturer! (In his 1795 report, Boudinot states that a fourth press for dollars and medals was expected to be finished in three months. Also, see Stewart, pg. 60.) This alone makes the story simply unbelievable.
So where did the presses come from? At least one press came from John Harper, (Stewart, p. 170, warrant for August 29, 1792. There are some discrepancies between Stewart and the Mint's warrant book regarding the presses. On pg. 170, warrant for Aug. 29, 1792, Stewart shows this for "cutting, presses" while the warrant book shows this as "cutting-presses". It is possible that this is merely a clerical error, and that these are both "coining" and cutting (blanking) presses. The Mint purchased much of Harper's equipment and it is likely they also purchased a coining press. Additionally; there is no other record which would account for the press used in late 1792 and early 1793.) And from Voigt's second account book we have yet another press. On April 8, 1793, Philip Lesher was paid 70 cents for "hauling a press ... from Mr. Hamilton's. (Record Group 104, entry 196: Personnel Record, April 8, 1793. (While listed by the Archives only as "Personnel Record", these are clearly Voigt's account books. All writing is in Voigt's own hand.) "Mr. Hamilton" may have been Alexander Hamilton.)
The original presses being of domestic origins (not as elaborate as European presses) explains both the light strikes on the earliest coinage and the need to order a press capable of striking dollars. These original presses were replaced between 1794 and 1795 with five larger presses. (Here again there are discrepancies between Stewart and the Mint's warrant books. The Mint warrant books list the warrant of March 25, 1794 (May 28 per the warrant book) to John Rutter and that of Feb. 2, 1795 to Samuel Howell as "castings", while Stewart shows these in detail as presses (pp. 175 and 178). Given Stewart's detail of these records and his ac=acy on the other warrants, it is this author's conclusion that Stewart had access to records not found by the author or no longer extant in the Archives. Stewart's iteration of the Howell presses also corresponds nicely to Boudinot's statement in his 1795 report, as previously mentioned.)
Since there are no drawings or detailed descriptions in the Mint records, the exact design of these presses is somewhat enigmatic. However, a reasonable view can be developed from several contemporary drawings and descriptions.
Hitherto, the presses have been generally shown as rather large, bulky machines with an overhead swingarm, which was operated by several workmen pulling on ropes attached at either end. However, these representations are based on the older style screw presses, particularly the one shown in Diderot's Encyclopedia of 1750. (Denis Cooper, The Art and Craft of Coin making, 1988, illustration p. 57. See also Half Cent Encyclopedia, illustration p. 24. For additional comments, see Sylvester S. Crosby, Early Coins of America, p. 287 for recollections of coining New Jersey coppers.)
A more accurate view, based on British and French technology, can be constructed from an engineering drawing of a contemporary press and an illustration of London's Tower Mint in 1812. From these, the screw presses can be seen to be rather stout and compact de-vices of about waist height.
The engineering drawing of Droz's press also shows at least one possible mechanism for the feedfingers, which were driven by a rod running in an eccentric groove immediately above the screw. Exactly who made the feedfingers for the Mint's presses remains somewhat of a mystery. Most authors credit Eckfeldt with their development, however there are no records to support this claim. It is far more likely that Harper developed the fingers as part of the abortive 1795 attempt to obtain a contract for copper cents, with the design copied by Eckfeldt. (See Boudinot's report, pp. 115-116.)
The illustration of the Tower Mint is particularly in-teresting as it shows the presses being operated by alternately pushing and pulling on wooden poles or heavy leather thongs attached to the ends of the swing arm.
Combining these illustrations with the eyewitness accounts of striking coins, it is possible to develop a fairly clear view of the operation of the presses. In his 1829 journal, B. C. Wailes recorded the following: (Taxay; p. 96.)
This [the press] is a very powerful, ingenious, simple (though very perfect) piece of machinery. It consists (like the cutting machine) of a very powerful upright screw, to the top of which is affixed a heavy & strong lever worked with apparent ease by one man at each end, & by which the screw is made to make about one fourth of a revolution & returning instantly to its former position. At the lower end of the screw is affixed the die which gives the impression on the upper side, & immediately under it is the die containing the impression for the reverse of the coin, around which a pair of nippers (which give the milling or impression on the edges), & by which placing as a rivet in the manner of shears admits the introduction of the coin before and its ejection after it receives the impression. Near the lower end of the Screw stands a tube sufficiently large to admit a considerable number of coins, one on top of the other, which may be termed the hopper, at the bottom of which is an apparatus sufficiently large to admit the passage of the coin, one at a time. The lower end in the file or hopper is struck out with great accuracy by a thin piece of iron made to strike edgewise at each movement of the lever and is conveyed by a channel formed for the purpose & is conveyed directly under the dye. The Screw is brought down & the nippers close with a force that makes the impression. The lever is instantly brought back, the nippers open, the stamped coin struck out of its place & conveyed to a box by a spout (or conductor) as the Screw rises, and another unstamped coin takes its place, & the Screw comes down again.