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G.W. Bell Assay Office - Gold Receipt, rec'd from C.T.H. Palmer [169259]

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / Ingots Start Price:150.00 USD Estimated At:300.00 - 500.00 USD
G.W. Bell Assay Office - Gold Receipt, rec'd from C.T.H. Palmer  [169259]
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Assay Office of G.W. Bell, 148 California Street, San Francisco, CA, 17-Mar-1860 No. 2581 Memorandum of Gold Bullion Deposited with the following assay results: Weight Before Melting 162.42 oz, After Melting 162.28 oz, Fineness .882, Net Value of Gold $2,948.01. Printers: Town & Beacon. , creme colored or off-white paper with pale orange printing, with some foxing, folds, and stains. Assay Office of G. (Gerrit, Gerritt or Garrett) W. Bell: G.W. Bell was born in Albany, New York, in 1819. He gained his assaying experience working for Wells Fargo & Co. in their banking business from 1854 through 1859. Bell opened his own assay office in San Francisco at 148 California Street in March of 1859 and employed J.T. Smith, Melter and Refiner who had previously worked at the S. F. Branch Mint and Ed Wolleb an experienced assayer in Europe, the Philadelphia Mint, and the Branch Mint of S.F. In 1861 (Langley), he had moved his office to 512 California St. On the fateful day of April 16, 1866, an unmarked container of nitroglycerine exploded, obliterating Bell, his assay office, and many innocent people in the surrounding area. ìThe explosion demolished everything within forty to fifty feet, including the whole interior of Bell's assay building, the storeroom and west portion of Wells Fargo & Co.'s building, the back portion of the Union Club and other apartments in the vicinity. Three weeks after the blast, Wells Fargo announced it would no longer carry nitroglycerine in its coaches. George Rogers bought what was left of Bell's assay business and continued business in the same location. [Ref: Placer Herald, Auburn, CA, April 21, 1866] Bell assay receipts are very popular and there are a couple of Bell assayer ingots known. The earliest G.W. Bell assay receipt known to the author is 1859. 1860 is probably an R7, as well as 1861 and 1862. 1863s are probably R5s. Bell used a very interesting format to discern different years of his assay receipts by using different color inks such that 1860 was red, 1863 purple, etc. All of the known assay sheet forms for Bell from 1863 and 1864 were pre-printed for the Savage Mining Company in Virginia City, as Bell apparently was one of the contract assayers for the Savage Mine. The Savage Mining Company records were released in the 1960's and have since been gobbled up by collectors and institutions. George E. Rogers and L.A. Sanderson took over the Assay Office of G.W. Bell located at 512 California Street on April 26, 1866, after he was killed in the nitroglycerin explosion on April 16th, 1866. (See California Coiners and Assayers by Dan Owens, 2000.). L.A. Sanderson was previously a bookkeeper with Dickenson & Gammins wholesale groceries and provisions, and George E. Rogers was a clerk working for G.W. Bell (see p.378 and 387 of Langleys 1866 cited above. Evidently Rogers bought out Sanderson who appears to have been the source of funding when both took over G. W. Bells Assay operations after the April accident earlier in the year. The title of the receipt in blue on white paper is ìAssay Office of Sanderson & Co. with a red printed legend on top ìGeo. E. Rogers, Successor to. This indicates that this Assay receipt form lasted probably less than one year, as later Geo. E. Rogers receipts are entitled ìAssay Office of Geo. E. Rogers, Successor to G.W. Bell. Also the vignette of Lady Justice and Scales are identical in Sandersons and the latter Rogers receipts. The ìSanderson & Co. without the red imprint of ìGeo. E. Rogers, Successor to. is unknown and must have existed only a few months. Both Rogers and Henry J. Fisher heading up the Melting Department had been employees of Bells for many years. Wolleb continued as Assayer. Size: 10.625 x 5.625 inches. San Francisco California 1860