Description
1855 GOLD Faux 20 DOLLAR Gold Token Coin California Blake & Co. Assayers brass copy Wells Fargo Dust advertising piece. Gorham Blake was a gold dust buyer for Wells Fargo. He went into business with John Agrell, assaying ores & stamping ingots. When Agrell died, Blake continued his business as Blake & Co. Since there were constant coin shortages caused by repeated closings of the San Francisco Branch Mint, Blake thought to make private issue coinage as other similar companies were doing to alleviate the shortage of money. Blake was a little late in beginning & by the time he created his first coins the era of private coinage in California was about over. The government was getting a bit sticky about unofficial coinage, & the coin was never minted. Only a few brass & copper patterns survive today. 1855 Gold Faux 20 Dollar Gold Token Coin California Blake & Co. Assayers Brass Copy Wells Fargo Dust Advertising Piece
