Eva B. Adams

Eva Bertrand Adams was born September 10, 1908, in the mining camp of Wonder, Nevada, east of Fallon, and rose to become one of the most distinguished public servants in the state's history. She earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Nevada in 1928 and a master's degree in English from Columbia University in 1936, teaching high school in Las Vegas and serving on the English faculty of the University of Nevada before turning to the law and to public service in Washington, D.C.

While working as an administrative assistant to United States Senator Patrick McCarran, and later to Senators Ernest Brown and Alan Bible, Adams pursued her legal education, earning a Bachelor of Laws from American University in 1948, a Master of Laws from George Washington University in 1952, and a doctorate in law from American University. She was admitted to both the Nevada and District of Columbia Bars - holding Nevada Bar number 2 following her admission in November 1950 - and in 1954 was admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of the United States.

In 1961, President John F. Kennedy appointed Adams the 30th Director of the United States Mint, making her only the second woman to hold that office. Reappointed by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1966, she served until 1969, guiding the Mint through a period of rapid change that included resolving a national coin shortage and overseeing construction of a new Philadelphia mint facility, which she regarded as her proudest and most lasting accomplishment. Eva Bertrand Adams died in Reno, Nevada, on August 23, 1991, at the age of 82.