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Presented by
Eagle Eye Rare Coins, Inc.
John A. Dix
Secretary of the Treasury 1/15/1861 - 3/6/1861
Upset with a report of the siezure of forts, arsenals and revenue cutters by local authorities on January, 29th, 1861,
John Adams Dix, Secretary of the Treasury wrote a scathing letter ordering a Lieutenant Caldwell to arrest Captain
Breshwood, of the Revenue Cutter "McClelland". Dix finished his letter with the words:
"If anyone attepts to haul down the American Flag shoot him on the spot" At the time tensions were very
high and no one wanted to touch off an incendiary incident. Dix was reluctant to tell President Buchannan about sending the letter, but
when he did, Buchannan was very upset. As it was not carried out literally at that time, the matter was soon forgotten. However,
the press got hold of the letter and it became a popular rallying cry for the Pro-Unionists.
The quote is altered slightly on the tokens. The word "haul" was changed to "tear" and "American Flag" was changed to "it", in reference to the "Flag of our Union" obverse. .
Collecting tips: 10 dies are known of the "Dix" statement (F-408 through 416 plus 413A). One die, F-414/209 has a popular spelling error
"SPOOT" instead of "Spot". These are paired with 9 dies of "The Flag of our Union" dies, (F-203 through F-214, not 211 or 213). Most of these are
common. There are 15 die pairings to a full set in copper with 5 of those also known in brass. The rarest die pairs are F-411/205 R9 and F-414/209 R10. Type collectors
may want one of the "Spoot" and "Spot" types only.
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