From Nova Scotia coal miner to director of the U.S. Mint

Relations between Canada and the United States may be strained today, but a century ago, a Nova Scotian was running the U.S. Mint at another time of economic upheaval.

Robert J. Grant's tenure at the mint included the early years of the Great Depression, meaning when the song Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? became an anthem for the hardship of the time, a Nova Scotian was the man responsible for producing those very coins.

Born in Springville, Pictou County, in 1862, Grant attended Pictou Academy before embarking on a short-lived stint working in the coal mines around Stellarton.

In 1880, a near-fatal underground accident changed the course of Grant's career, as detailed in Aubrey Dorrington's 1976 book, The History of Stellarton.

"He was digging coal from the face of the seam when suddenly, without warning, the roof gave way and came crashing down about him and he barely escaped with his life," Dorrington wrote.

"He began thinking about his narrow escape, and suddenly realized that coal mining was a very dangerous occupation; he then decided to seek work elsewhere."

Grant handed in his resignation. A week later, he departed for Boston to seek his fortune in a less risky career.

Grant worked for a printing company there and took night classes to enhance his education, according to a Mining Association of Nova Scotia blog post.

Grant's mining experience lingered in his mind, though. He enrolled in the Colorado School of Mines and after getting his education, he made the leap from miner to mining engineer and became a U.S. citizen shortly after.

Grant then worked in the U.S., Mexico and South Africa, honing his knowledge of gold handling and processing.

From 1904 to 1905, he also ran a mine in Australia as a representative of Herbert Hoover, with whom he had become friends.

Grant's entry into federal service came in 1921, when President Warren Harding appointed him as superintendent of the Denver Mint.

Two years later, President Calvin Coolidge appointed him director of the U.S. Mint in Washington.

Grant served in the role for 10 years, working under Coolidge and friend-turned-president Herbert Hoover.