Jacob Reese Eckfeldt (March 1803-August 9, 1872) was an assayer for the

United States Mint The United States Mint is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury responsible for producing coinage for the United States to conduct its trade and commerce, as well as controlling the movement of bullion. It does not produce paper money; tha ...

in Philadelphia.

Formative years

Born in Philadelphia in March 1803, Jacob R. Eckfeldt was a son of

Adam Eckfeldt John Adam Eckfeldt (June 15, 1769 – February 6, 1852) was a worker and official during the first years of the United States Mint. A lifelong Philadelphian, Eckfeldt served as the second chief coiner of the Mint, from 1814 until 1839. Eckfel ...

, chief coiner at the United States Mint. He followed his father into the same area of government service, entering the U.S. Mint during an early period in his life. He then steadily worked his way up at the Mint until becoming chief assayer. During his tenure, he reported problems with certain lots of English sovereigns that had been sent to the mint for recoinage, noting that these particular lots fell below the Mint's

standard Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object th ...

. Denied by English authorities as "impossible" because the

London mint London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major se ...

"makes no mistakes," Eckfeldt was vindicated by the resulting investigation which confirmed Eckfeldt's findings. In response,

parliamentary A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democracy, democratic government, governance of a sovereign state, state (or subordinate entity) where the Executive (government), executive derives its democratic legitimacy ...

law ordered close examination of the weight and

fineness The fineness of a precious metal object (coin, bar, jewelry, etc.) represents the weight of ''fine metal'' therein, in proportion to the total weight which includes alloying base metals and any impurities. Alloy metals are added to increase hardne ...

of coins worldwide, which determined that coins produced in the United States were more uniform than the coins of other nations, a finding which enhanced Eckfeldt's worldwide reputation as an assayer. Appointed to his post during

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...

's presidency, Eckfeldt held that position until his death. He was elected as a member to the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

in 1844.

Death and interment

Eckfeldt died in Philadelphia on August 9, 1872.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eckfeldt, Jacob Reese 1803 births 1872 deaths Scientists from Philadelphia United States Mint American metallurgists