The Old U.S. Mint at 5th and Mission

Old-mint-under-construction.jpg

Old mint under construction, 1870s

Photo: Edweard Muybridge, courtesy California Historical Society

Soma1$old-mint-rear-1990s.jpg

Back of the Old Mint Building, mid-1990s.

Photo: Chris Carlsson

Old U.S. Mint, 88 Fifth Street at Mission. After spending three years making his literary mark in England, Ambrose Bierce returned to San Francisco in 1875. Like many a writer after him, Bierce discovered that "making a living in San Francisco by freelancing was next to impossible" and went to work at the Mint. John Dillinger's explanation of why he robbed banks — "That's where the money is" — was presumably also Bierce's excuse.

The diabolic wordsmith wasn't the only beneficiary of the Mint's largesse. The Old Mint played a key role in San Francisco's amazing recovery from the 1906 earthquake; its vast reserves were used to create the money and credit that sparked the rebuilding spree. The historic building has since been converted into a museum, but was closed in 1994. Plans are afoot to reopen in 2011 as a Museum of the City of San Francisco.

--Dr. Weirde

Soma1$old-mint-front-mid-1990s.jpg

Front of the Old Mint Building at 5th and Mission survived the 1906 earthquake and fire.

Photo: Chris Carlsson


Prev. Document Next Document