Royal Canadian Mint in Ottawa, ON

Royal Canadian Mint in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada is one of the places where Canadian and other coins for countries around the world are made.

The Mint's history goes back to 1908 when it produced Canada's first domestically produced coin. The day was January 2 and in attendance were several dignitaries. Governor General Earl Grey activated the press to strike the fifty-cent piece and moments later the Countess Grey went about striking Canada's first bronze cent.

In 1931 the Mint became a completely Canadian institution when the building on Sussex and the surrounding land passed into Canadian hands. The modern Royal Canadian Mint is a for-profit Crown corporation. Its sole shareholder is the Government of Canada and the purpose of the Mint is to deliver a "fair return on investment" for the government.

Before 1931 the Royal Canadian Mint was under the direction of Britain's Royal Mint.

The Royal Canadian Mint makes Canadian coins, but also makes coins for other countries. The Mint also designs and manufactures collector coins. Other items the Mint makes make include jewelry, customized metals, tokens and trade dollars, and fine watches.

The Mint began producing collector and commemorative coins in 1956. In 1979 the Gold Maple Leaf was launched. The Gold Maple Leaf is the world's purest gold bullion coin. In 1982 the Royal Canadian Mint became the first to market 9999 fine gold and was the first in the world to offer pure gold bullion.

In 1996 the Toonie was launched. In 2000 Canadian coins were converted to plated coins. The plating process was patented by the Royal Canadian Mint.