1858-C $5 (1858-C Half Eagle) NGC XF45. This Charlotte Mint circulated 1858-C Half Eagle has traces of mint luster remaining. Abrasion and light wear, in keeping with the grade, are evident on both sides. All of the details of the hair down Libertys neck show. There is slight wear on the coronet at the top. The lower part of the coronet and hair show slight wear. There is also a scratch between two of the arrows extending to the legend. The strike is above average for the date with some weakness seen in about half of the stars.

In the 1790s gold was accidentally discovered in North Carolina. The first United States Gold Rush took place in the early 1800s in North Carolina and Georgia. In the area around Charlotte, North Carolina almost 100 gold mines were in operation. Second only to farming, prospecting for gold became the main source of employment in North Carolina. The most gold produced in the United States came from North Carolina until 1848, when it was discovered in California.

The gold that was produced at Charlotte had to be refined and standardized so it would have commercial value. Private mints like the Bechtlers and Templeton Reids opened to assay the new gold and convert it to coinage. In order to standardize this coinage and because transportation to Philadelphia was so poor as a result of bandits, unfriendly Indians, and poor roads, a branch mint in Charlotte was opened in 1836.