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Commemorative State Quarters
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Years of planning, politics, and
preparation preceded the Jan 1999 Commemorative State Quarters roll out.
Borrowing from official congressional documents and other sources, we've
dedicated this page to chronicle the origin of the 50 State Quarter program and
beyond.
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The First Public Airing
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Clearing the First Hurdle
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The 1997 Feasibility Study
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Final Legislative Action
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Choosing Designs
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"What's This Weird Quarter?"
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Mid-Term Report Card
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Looking Toward 2009
So, if you're interested in knowing how the statehood quarters concept got off the
ground, the legislative action to put the
Commemorative State Quarters program
in motion, the logistics to execute the plan, a retrospective view of our
success thus far, or a look ahead toward the conclusion of the Commemorative
State Quarters program, then you've come to the right place. Now lets get
started! |
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The First Public Airing |
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Who deserves credit for the commemorative state quarters? Was
there any one individual who was the
first to come up with the idea? No one can really say for sure, but there
are a series of public record events that we can trace backward into time, to
help us to understand the underlying sentiment that brought the 50 State Quarter
program to fulfillment.
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Above is an example quarter from the 1992 "Canada
125" project. This particular quarter honored the province of Ontario. The
"Canada 125" project proved to be both an inspiration and a working model for
our State Quarter program. |
In 1992, the Royal Canadian Mint commenced their
"Canada 125" project. In commemoration of the 125th anniversary of
Canadian confederation, 13 special coins -- one 25 cent coin for each province
and territory plus a $1 coin honoring the entire nation -- were released by the
Canadian government. Proud Canadians readily accepted the new
circulating coinage.
The March 1993 COINage magazine
featured a proposal by veteran numismatist and author Q. David Bowers for a
United States program similar to that of our northern neighbor. Bowers
opined "... a program such as this would foster state pride, as well as greater
interest in numismatics...". The Bowers proposal specified the 50 state designs should appear on the reverse of the Kennedy half
dollar.
Nothing happened for more than two years. In July, 1995, U.S. Rep.
Michael Castle (R-Del) held a House subcommittee hearing in Washington D.C. on
commemorative coinage abuses. As the hearing droned on, witness Harvey G.
Stack caught everyone off guard by suggesting that a circulating commemorative
coin program, perhaps something to pay homage to each of the fifty states.
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As a member of the House, US Rep. Michael Castle
of Delaware was the sparkplug who ignited the circulating State Quarters idea. |
Another witness at the hearing, coin writer David L. Ganz, agreed with
Stack's remark and followed up by convincing subcommittee chairman Castle to
initiate legislation authorizing a series of commemorative state quarters.
Philip Diehl, the Mint Director at the time, was skeptical of the notion, but
after listening to Ganz' reasoning, became a believer, and put the weight of his
office behind the measure. Diehl later wrote "From my vantage point, the
lion's share of the credit for making the 50 States program a reality goes to
David Ganz, for his persistence as an advocate, and Congressman Michael Castle
for championing the proposal through Congress." The former Mint Director
went so far as to claim "...the hobby owes a debt of gratitude to Congressman
Castle and Mr. Ganz."
To be sure, a number of individuals can rightfully claim a share of the
credit for getting the Commemorative State Quarters program off the ground, but
apparently it was Castle and Ganz who finally forced the issue onto the public
stage.
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Clearing the First Hurdle |
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In 1996, Congressman Castle submitted legislation to authorize the 50 state
quarter program. Castle's legislation was later combined into H.R. 1776, a
bill that dealt with a number of commemorative coinage issues. Eventually,
both houses of Congress approved a commemorative coinage bill. Public Law
104-329, better known as the United States Commemorative Coin Act of 1996,
became law on October 26. Congressman Castle
observed "Through the years, our nation's currency has symbolized the great
leaders and historic moments of our nation. And now by passing this
legislation we can prepare to pay tribute to the states and people that make our
nation what it is today."
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Page 1 of the Commemorative Coin
Act of 1996. In addition to authorizing and providing guidelines for a
feasibility study on circulating state quarters, the Act deals with a host of
commemorative coinage issues. |
So now the program was ready to roll, right? Wrong! This was just
the first hurdle to clear. The 1996 law, as it pertained to state
quarters, merely authorized a study to be
conducted by the Department of the Treasury. The purpose of the study was
to look at all the factors needed to make the circulating commemorative state
quarters program successful. The law specified the study had to be
completed by June 1, 1997. The Treasury Secretary would then be given 60
days to decide whether or not to go forward with the implementation of the
program. Before a big change in pocket change was made, Treasury had to be
prepared and confident to make the switch. |
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The 1997 Feasibility Study |
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The government awarded the
feasibility study contract to Coopers & Lybrand, for addressing certain issues
specified by the Commemorative Coin Act of 1996. The language in the Act
permitted Coopers & Lybrand to base their study on the following assumptions:
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The Mint would strike statehood
quarters only during the life of the program. When the program ends, the
Eagle reverse returns.
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No change to physical
specifications of the quarter.
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Five quarters each year for ten
years.
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State quarter designs go on
reverse. Minimal changes only to Washington obverse.
The Act required the study to:
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Assess likely public acceptance of
and consumer demand for the different coins which many be issued under the
Program, taking into account the length of the Program.
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Compare the costs of producing the
Statehood coins and the revenue that the Program would generate.
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Assess the impact on coin
distribution systems.
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Document the advantages and
disadvantages of different approaches to selecting designs for coins in such a
Program.
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Note other factors which the
Secretary may consider appropriate in deciding upon the feasibility of the
Program.
Coopers & Lybrand conducted
telephone surveys with 2032 adults from March 17 to March 30, 1997.
Twelve 2-hour focus groups held in six geographically diverse cities were held
April 7-16. Some of the results forwarded to the Treasury Secretary bode
well for the a Commemorative State Quarter program:
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51% of respondents viewed the
program favorably. 38% were indifferent.
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11% thought the program was the
wrong thing to do.
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40% said there was a good or fair
possibility they would save the quarters. A full 35% said saving the
commemorative quarters was very likely or certain.
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25% had little or no interest in
saving the quarters.
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When percentages were projected to
the population as a whole, it was estimated that as many as 98 million people
would be interested in collecting at least one full set of coins.
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The program would save US
government anywhere from $2.6 billion to $5.1 billion because of
seigniorage.
Explanation: It costs around 4.5 cents to produce a quarter at the Mint
(material, labor, etc.). The
quarter enters circulation by "selling" it to a Federal Reserve Bank for 25
cents, whereupon the FRB distributes it to the population. When quarters are set aside
by the public as souvenirs, more quarters are
necessarily produced at the Mint ( to fulfill the needs of commerce) and subsequently "sold" at a profit
of more than 20 cents per quarter.
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The 50 State Quarters program would
gain broader acceptance and publicity if individual citizens within the
various states participated in developing and selecting their state quarter
design.
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The concepts of celebrating state
pride by displaying topics of historical, cultural, and heritage significance,
and potential uses as an educational tool for teaching young people about
geography and a wide range of other subjects were prevalent in the survey.
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Telephone surveys and focus groups both indicated
that nature, scenery, and state landmarks were most popular subjects. |
The feasibility study reached the
Treasury Secretary's desk on May 30, 1997. In summary, the Coopers & Lybrand
study indicated that if executed properly, the Commemorative State Quarters
concept had an excellent chance for success. Treasury Secretary Robert
E. Rubin authorized the program to move forward. The center of attention
once again shifted back to Congress. |
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Final Legislative Action |
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The primary thrust of the United States Commemorative Coin Act of 1996 was to
initiate a study to test the feasibility of a circulating state quarter program,
plus general guidelines around which to build the framework of the study, and to
report findings back to the Treasury and Congress in a timely manner.
These objectives were met as specified, all redounding in favor of proceeding
forward with the state quarter plan. However, before the program could
become official Treasury policy, yet another act of Congress was necessary.
Once again, it was Delaware Congressman Mike Castle who skillfully steered
legislation through Congress. The 50 States Commemorative Coin Program Act,
also known as Public Law 105-124,
was passed by the House and Senate, and signed into law by President Clinton on
December 1, 1997. The general provisions of the law:
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An acknowledgment that it is appropriate and timely to honor the 50
states, and to promote the diffusion of knowledge among the youth of the
United States about the individual sates, their history and geography, and the
rich diversity of the national heritage.
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Codified the redesign and issuance of designs for each state. The
design to be placed on the "tails" side of Washington quarter, and to be
emblematic of a state.
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Five new state quarters every year for ten years, in the order in which
the states ratified the Constitution or were admitted to the Union.
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Design selection procedures.
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Manufacturing stipulations.
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Long time coin supply distributor Whitman
Publishing leaped into the commemorative 50 State Quarter fray with coin display folders.
Their folder shown above is a top selling product in a very
crowded field. |
What was a dream for so long was now a reality. Excitement reverberated
throughout the coin collecting class, many of whom had clamored for new coinage
for years. Network news broadcasts to the generally uniformed population
that the familiar "workhorse" quarter denomination would soon take on a strangely
different look. Retailers rushed to get their distribution systems in
place. Coin display manufacturers vied to see who could develop the best
eye-catching holder. Surely millions of people will collect these
quarters, they reasoned. One of the top selling folders, produced by
Whitman Publishing, is shown at left. One question often overlooked amongst all this
buzzing: could the
Mint overcome manufacturing and logistical challenges in time to strike the first State Quarter by January 1999? |
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Choosing Designs |
Treasury Secretary Rubin provided details on the design selection process to all
50 governors on January 9, 1998. The Secretary defined the selection
process as follows:
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Each governor will provide the U.S. Mint with a minimum of three and a
maximum of five design concepts or themes representative of the state. The
governor will decide the process for identifying these concepts.
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The Mint will review the concepts for appropriateness and coinability. No
head and shoulders portrait or bust of any person, living or dead, and no
living person may be included in the design. George Washington's portrait will
remain on the obverse (heads) side of the quarters. The artists at the Mint
will then develop actual candidate designs based on the concepts sent by the
state.
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The Fine Arts Commission will be consulted on the candidate designs and
the Citizens Commemorative Coin Advisory Committee (CCCAC) will provide its
review.
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Candidate designs will then be sent to the Treasury Secretary for his
review and approval.
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The Mint will then return the Treasury Secretary's approved designs to the
governor for the state's final design selection.
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The governor will determine the state's final design selection process.
Once chosen, the state will return its final design to the Treasury Department
for the Treasury Secretary's approval.
To make space on the reverse side to accommodate the state design, the words
"United States of America", "Quarter Dollar," "Liberty," and "In God We Trust"
would have to be moved to the obverse side.
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December 7, 1998 first State Quarter strike
ceremony at Philadelphia Mint. Those in attendance included Mint Director
Phil Diehl, US Treasurer Mary Ellen Withrow, Governor Thomas Carper and US Rep
Michael Castle, both of Delaware. 5th grade students from St. Mary's
Parochial school also participated. Image courtesy of
United States Mint. |
The five states to have their commemorative quarters issued in 1999 were, in
this order, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut.
The first state to ratify the U.S. Constitution, Delaware, had the least amount
of time to prepare their state design, but negotiated the process in ample time.
Their state design takes us back to July 1776, featuring an image of Caesar
Rodney rushing on horseback to reach the Continental Congress in Philadelphia,
arriving just in time to cast the deciding vote declaring American independence
from Britain.
On December 7, 1998, a ceremony was held at the
Philadelphia Mint for the symbolic strike of the first Commemorative State
Quarter. Dignitaries from the Treasury Department and the Mint attended,
joined by Delaware state officials, Congressman Castle, and others who worked so
diligently to make this day come to fruition. Millions of the Delaware quarters were
released into circulation on January 4, 1999. |
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"What's This Weird Quarter?" |
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The very first State Quarter shows Caesar Rodney
of Delaware rushing to sign the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia.
United States Mint image. |
Despite the fanfare, a sizeable portion of the citizenry didn't expect to see a
new quarter showing up in pocket change. Questions such as "What's this
weird quarter?", and "Who's this guy riding the horse?" dominated conversations
around the cash register in early 1999. The general public was interested
in the change, and actively sought more information. Numismatic publishers
reported a surge of phone calls, e-mails and letters shortly after the first
State Quarter release, many of them from non-collectors anxious to learn about
the coins. General circulation periodicals, television spots, and other
media outlets ran stories.
One weekly hobby magazine, Coin World , debated how to cover the new 50 State Quarter program.
They thought a column appearing once a month would satiate the thirst of State
Quarter collectors, but they underestimated the level of interest.
They
were surprised when huge volumes of correspondence flooded their "IN" box with
all sorts of questions and comments about the coins; general information
requests,
display holder options, scheduled release dates, design contests, and
more. Because so much of the public wanted news on the State
Quarters, the Coin World editors decided a regular weekly column was justified.
The weekly column continues to run to this day, a clear indicator that the State
Quarter initiative still has a strong fan base. |
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Mid-Term Report Card |
The Commemorative State Quarter program reached its halfway mark with the
release of the Arkansas coin on October 20, 2003. A ceremony was held at
the US Philadelphia Mint to celebrate the most popular commemorative coin
program ever produced in the United States. Mint Director Henrietta H.
Fore welcomed a number of distinguished guests, including Delaware
representative Michael Castle. Director Fore commented "Congressman Castle
was the catalyst, authoring the legislation that launched this remarkable
program, the most popular in United States Mint history".
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Hundreds of millions of state quarters have been
removed from circulation by collectors. For each of these quarters, the
government benefits more than 20 cents.
United States Mint image. |
Popular indeed!
The Mint estimates that more than 130 million Americans are collecting the 50
State Quarter coins, to some degree. This shouldn't come as a major
revelation, because we all know someone who's setting aside some of these
quarters, don't we?
From a pure financial perspective, the State Quarter program is helping out
with the nation's bottom line. Thanks to
seigniorage and numismatic sales, the State Quarters delivered more than $4
billion in savings to the government after its first five years of production.
The "Lessons Learned" category of the first five years yielded a new design
evaluation process, announced by the Mint on March 11, 2003. The revisions
were made to enhance the program's educational value and promote the historical
accuracy and artistic beauty of the designs.
Stage 1: The United States Mint
will initiate the formal state design process by contacting the state governor
approximately 24 months prior to the beginning of the year in which the state
will be honored. The governor, or such other state officials or group as the
state may designate, will appoint an individual to serve as the state's liaison
to the United States Mint for this program.
Stage 2: The state will conduct a concept selection process as determined by the
state. The state will provide to the United States Mint at least three, but no
more than five, different concepts or themes emblematic of the state; each
concept or theme will be in narrative format. The narrative must explain why the
concept is emblematic of the state and what the concept represents to the
state's citizens. A narrative that merely describes a particular design is not
acceptable.
Stage 3: Based on the narratives, the United States Mint will produce original
artwork of the concepts, focusing on aesthetic beauty, historical accuracy,
appropriateness and coinability. If the state has not provided at least three
concepts, the United States Mint may produce additional concepts for the state.
Stage 4: The United States Mint will contact the state to collaborate on the
artwork. The state will appoint an historian, or other responsible officials or
experts, to participate in this collaboration to ensure historical accuracy and
proper state representation of the artwork. The United States Mint will refine
the artwork before forwarding it to the advisory bodies.
Stage 5: The Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee and the U.S. Commission of Fine
Arts will review the candidate designs and make recommendations, and the United
States Mint may make changes to address such recommendations.
Stage 6: The United States Mint will present the candidate designs to the
Secretary of the Treasury for review and approval.
Stage 7: The United States Mint will return to the state all candidate designs
approved by the Secretary of the Treasury.
Stage 8: From among the designs approved by the Secretary, the state will
recommend the final design through a process determined by the state, within a
time frame specified by the United States Mint.
Stage 9: The United States Mint will present the state's recommended design to
the Secretary for final approval. If there were a report grading the progress
of the Commemorative State Quarters at mid-term, we estimate the program would
have deserved somewhere between a B+ and A-, which is very good, especially when one
considers everything that could have misfired. |
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Looking Toward 2009 |
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The Washington quarter eagle reverse has been
circulating since 1932. Current law calls for it to reappear in 2010. |
The Hawaii State Quarter is scheduled to release sometime in the Autumn of 2008.
With that, the Commemorative State Quarters program was originally scheduled to come to a close.
Legislation to similarly honor the District of Columbia and several US
territories was added to a provision to the 2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act
that requires the U.S. Mint to produce six newly designed quarters in 2009
honoring the District of Columbia and the five U.S. territories: the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin
Islands and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
The
2009 quarter
program will continue to feature President George Washington on the
obverse. The reverse will
commemorate the history, geography or traditions of the District of Columbia and
each territory, in a manner of the State Quarters.
The first quarter to be issued in 2009 will honor the
District of Columbia. The five United States territories will follow throughout
2009. The familiar eagle reverse, which is as ingrained in American culture about
as much as baseball and video games, will then fly again in 2010.
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