When Coins Were King: The Coins, Power Struggles, and Personalities That Defined a Nation by Michael F. Moran is a scholarly and captivating exploration of America’s rich monetary history, brought to life with hundreds of vivid images and a compelling narrative. Moran masterfully unveils the untold stories behind the nation’s coinage in the late 1800s and early 1900s, a time when the coins that jingled in American pockets had real value in silver and gold. The story starts with the great Comstock Lode—a discovery of gold and silver that outshined the California Gold Rush—and fueled a rebound in our nation’s shaky paper-driven economy after the Civil War. It gives the inside story of the outsized personalities that fought life-and-death struggles for economic control and political power at the time.

Against this backdrop, Moran details the political shenanigans, widespread corruption at the San Francisco Mint, and an unlikely cast of characters: the young, idealistic President Theodore Roosevelt; the nation’s most-famous sculptor, Augustus Saint-Gaudens; the energetic, populist leader William Jennings Bryan; the sage Senator John Sherman; and many others who influenced our nation’s coinage.

Full of rich storytelling and free from overwhelming statistics that tend to obscure the human element of defining moments, When Coins Were King offers a fresh perspective on the economic and political struggles that still echo today. A must-read for history buffs, numismatists, and anyone fascinated by the power of money.

Hard cover, 510 pages. ISBN-10: 0794851002