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C. Wiegand & Company Assay Certificate for the Summit Mill [164686]

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / Ingots Start Price:600.00 USD Estimated At:1,200.00 - 3,000.00 USD
C. Wiegand & Company Assay Certificate for the Summit Mill  [164686]
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Extremely rare; only known example of this assay document. Assay certificate dated Sept. 22nd, 1868, for a deposit by OS Carville for the Summit Mill. This 47 ounce deposit is atypical for the Comstock since it is higher in gold content than silver (581 vs 356 fineness). This unique form breaks down the assay fees and values in extreme detail. The reverse includes notes on the bullion, as well as tips to "secure good retorting" and coin rates of charge. The bottom of the form lists Conrad Wiegand and mentions that he is "Formerly Supervising Assayer of U.S. Mint, San Francisco, and Late Sup't. of Assaying at the Gould & Curry Mill, Virginia City, Nev." Printed in blue ink by Enterprise Print (the Territorial Enterprise in Virginia City). 14 x 8.5" The Summit Mill was located at the north end of Virginia City. It had 20 stamps and a 35-ton-a-day capacity. It was shutdown in 1870 and dismantled in 1872. [Ansari]

Conrad Wiegand was born in Philadelphia, where he worked for the US Mint, before the California Gold Rush brought him to the US Branch Mint in San Francisco on or near its inception in 1854. Unfortunately, Wiegand's controversial political opinions led to his termination from the mint in 1864.

Recommended as a key assayer of the SF Mint by James King's brother, Thomas Starr King of San Francisco, Wiegand was hired by Louis Janin, the Superintendent of the Gould & Curry Gold & Silver Mining Company, to help manage the mill outside Virginia City.

Wiegand's job with the Gould & Curry lasted only a few months, however, due to his unpopular political stance, but because the assay business was booming on the Comstock, there was enough work for Wiegand to set up shop on his own.Shortly thereafter, financed by his old friend in San Francisco, William Ralston and the Bank of California, Wiegand was able to relocate and open the Gold Hill Assay Office on May 14, 1865.

Wiegand's heartfelt concern for the plight of the common man, and his lifelong political leanings that always put him at odds with government bureaucrats and big business interests continued to plague him, however, eventually creating conflict with William Sharon and the banking interests in Virginia City, and effectively ending his friendship with Ralston.

In early 1870, when Wiegand started publishing the People's Tribune, in an attempt to shed light on the financial fraud being committed by the big Comstock bankers his reputation was blackened by the bigger mainstream news press that were financially influenced by the Bank of California.

Despite the smear campaign waged against him, Wiegand earned respect for his assaying expertise and successful business dealings. He was known as an inventor, as were other members of his family, and even patented a new process for slimes and tailings reduction machinery in 1874. A few years later he was involved in a new mercury and silver separation process and in the mid to late 1870's Wiegand taught assaying classes in Virginia City that included blowpipe analyses and mineralogy.

The official historical record claims that Conrad Wiegand hung himself in his office on June 14, 1880, even though there were unexplained injuries to his body and blood was found in unusual places. While his death was ruled a suicide by the Storey County Coroner and no shortage of rumors of debt and insanity among the community, in part due to the negative press he suffered in retaliation for his expose of powerful, competing businessmen, his contribution to the assay industry on the Comstock cannot be understated. Virginia City Nevada 1868