1652 – First Colonial Mint

Defying its royal charter, the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1652 opens a mint in Boston. Throughout the next four decades, it will mint most coins with a date of 1652 because Charles II, who gained the British throne in 1660, was angry his exclusive right to coin money had been violated. The Colonists will maintain their deception successfully through 1682.

The mint’s first coins bear the letters “NE” (for New England) but soon will be changed to minimize counterfeiting. The new coins will replace NE with a tree: a willow from 1652 to 1660, an oak, 1660-1667, and a pine, 1667-1682. (U.S. Mint)