BARNSLEY FIRST MINT GENEALOGY

 

First Mint Genealogy

Edward Ned Barnsley and Eric P. Newman conducted an active correspondence for many years, focused on colonial numismatics and including early paper money and Connecticut coppers. In a letter dated January 8, 1961, Barnsley related that a cousin of his great-grandfather, Isaac Hough, served as chief clerk in the U.S. Mint from 1792 until his death in 1801. Pete Smith accepted our challenge to validate (or refute) Barnsley's claim and provided the following analysis. Barnsley's line is:

• Edward Barnsley (1906-1989)
• [Father] John Herman Barnsley (1854-1932)
• [Grandmother] Mary Hough Barnsley (1814-1895)
• [1gr-grandfather] Benjamin Hough (1770-1848)
• [2gr-grandfather] Joseph Hough, Jr. (1730-1818)
• [3gr-grandfather] Joseph Hough, Sr. (1695-1773)
• [4gr-grandfather] Richard Hough (1654-1705)

Isaac Hough's line is:

• Isaac Hough, Jr. (1759-1801)
• [Father] Isaac Hough, Sr. (1726-1786)
• [Grandfather] John Hough (1693-1761)
• [1gr-grandfather] Richard Hough (?-?)

Ned Barnsley was close but not quite – his great-grandfather was more precisely a second cousin, not first cousin, of the Mint clerk Isaac Hough. Barnsley added that Unfortunately, my branch of the Hough's acquired little of the product of their place of employment. They were all nice people though, and left perhaps some form of numismatics in their transmitted genes, even if they did forget to put aside a roll or two of Strawberry leaf coppers for posterity.

Images: 1793 Strawberry Leaf 1c, NC-3, ex. Stack's Bowers August 2020 Rarities Night, lot 1006, realized $660,000.

Link to Newman/Barnsley correspondence on NNP:
https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/book/561116

	NBS (coinbooks.org) Web