Source: CoinWorld
Category: Quarter
The Hawaii quarter, the 50th and last coin in the popular 50 State Quarters Program, was ceremonially launched at Bishop Square in downtown Honolulu today. Amid a keiki hula performance and Hawaiian music, United States Mint Director Ed Moy bade farewell to the Nation’s most successful coin program in history.
“Long after the last coin in the 50 State Quarters Program rolls off the presses at the United States Mint, we will remember the wonderful things we accomplished with this 10-year initiative,” said Director Moy. “Americans gained a renewed sense of pride in their respective states. More of us were inspired to explore our Nation’s history through the unique story that each quarter-dollar tells. Because of the 50 State Quarters Program, a geography lesson will jingle in our pockets for years to come.”
Following the ceremony, Governor Linda Lingle and Director Moy handed out shiny new Hawaii quarters to children who attended the launch. Adults lined up to exchange their bills for $10 rolls of Hawaii quarters. An estimated 147 million Americans collect the coins in the 50 State Quarters Program.
In 2009, the United States Mint will embark on the District of Columbia and United States Territories Quarters Program by minting and issuing six newly designed quarters.
Tip: U.S. Mint
Governor Sarah Palin’s office announced as late as last night that she would be spending today at the Alaska State Fair to introduce the newest state quarter into circulation.
Governor Palin had a more important ceremony to attend, however, as she took her place beside Sen. John McCain’s Friday and was selected as his vice presidential candidate.
While Alaska found itself in the national spotlight during the historic political announcement, the ceremonial release of the Alaska commemorative quarter continued as planned.
Standing in for Governor Palin at the Alaska State Fair in Palmer was Lieutenant Governor Sean Parnell, who was joined by United States Mint Deputy Director Andrew Brunhart.
In related news: The Alaska quarter went into circulation nationwide on August 25, 2008. It will take about two weeks for most Americans to see the new quarter-dollars in their change. The United States Mint estimates that it will produce about 500 million Alaska quarters.
The last quarter in the series for the state of Hawaii enters circulation some time in the fourth quarter of 2008.
Courtesy: CoinNews.net
Public voting for three designs for the official Virgin Islands territorial quarter ended Friday, June 13. The winning design “V.I. Beauty” received 6,882 votes or 52 percent. The “First in Freedom” and “Three Queens” designs garnered 4,553 and 1,887 votes respectively.
The “V.I. Beauty” quarter designs is a geographical rendition of the Virgin Islands, which includes the 3 major islands, the official bird of the Virgin Islands, the Yellow Breast or Banana Quit (Coreba Flaveola), and the official flower of the Virgin Islands, the Yellow Cedar or Yellow Elder (Tacoma Stans).
2009 quarter release schedule:
- The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
- Guam
- American Samoa
- The United States Virgin Islands
- The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
More information regarding these quarters, including the design process, may be read though the US Mint page, The District of Columbia and United States Territories Quarter Program.
Source: CoinNews.net
Public voting ended Saturday for Guam’s commemorative quarter set for release in 2009. Just as Guam residents were asked to help create the quarter designs, they were asked once again by Governor Felix P. Camacho to vote for their favorite.
The original design narrative provided to the Mint for GU-01 was:
The outline of the island of Guam sits in the center of the coin. To the left of the outline of Guam is the phrase, “Guåhan Tånó I Man Chamorro.” On the right of the coin sits two distinct images, one on top of the other: the Latte and the Flying Proa.
2009 quarter release schedule:
- The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
- Guam
- American Samoa
- The United States Virgin Islands
- The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
Source: CoinNews.net
With the popular 50 States Quarter Program ending this year and the new six quarter D.C. and U.S. Territories Quarter Program beginning and ending next year, the obverse or heads of the quarter-dollar coin was to revert to its original design of 1998.
America’s Beautiful National Parks Quarter Dollar Coin Act of 2008 (H.R. 6184) would feature new reverse quarter designs featuring national parks and sites and was introduced by Rep. Michael Castle [R-DE], Rep. Luis Gutierrez [D-IL], and Carolyn Maloney [D-NY].
Several key legislative statements would require:
- The quarter dollars series to begin in 2010
- Reverse designs emblematic of 1 national site in each State, D.C. and U.S. Territory
- Quarters issued in the order in which sites were first established as a national site.
- An issue rate of 5 new designs each year
The U.S. Mint would also have authorization to issue uncirculated, proof and silver versions of each quarter. Interestingly, there’s a clause that could extend the series further.
” SECOND ROUND AT DISCRETION OF SECRETARY- (i) DETERMINATION- The Secretary may make a determination before the end of the 9-year period beginning when the first quarter dollar is issued under this subsection to continue the period of issuance until a second national site in each State, the District of Columbia, and each territory referred to in this subsection has been honored with a design on a quarter dollar.
Source: CoinNews.net.
Note: The California state quarter shows conservationist John Muir, a California condor and Yosemite National Park’s Half Dome on the coin’s reverse.
U.S. Mint Director Ed Moy (TKE alumni from Lambda, Univ. of Wisconsin) said America’s coins are public art that people get to see every day. He said they also can be educational — such as coins with presidents’ pictures or the program to honor each of the 50 states on the backs of quarters.
Director Moy and Gov. Bill Richardson launched New Mexico’s quarter on Monday 07 April 2008 at the state Capitol in Santa Fe. Moy will also be in Albuquerque for a coin collectors’ forum open to everyone.
The New Mexico quarter is the 47th coin of the United States Mint’s popular 50 State Quarters Program, because New Mexico was the 47th state to be accepted into the Union in 1912. The coin bears the image of a Zia sun symbol over a topographical outline of the State with the inscription “Land of Enchantment.” The coin also bears the inscriptions “New Mexico” and “1912.”
The New Mexico quarter design:
WHAT:
Launch of the New Mexico Commemorative Quarter-Dollar &
Quarter Exchange
Coin Collectors Forum on Eve of Launch
WHO:
United States Mint Director Ed Moy
New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson
Secretary Stuart Ashman, Department of Cultural Affairs
State Historian Estevan Rael-Galvez
Santa Fe All Stars
WHEN:
Launch: April 7th, 2008, 11 a.m. (MT); Quarter Exchange to immediately follow ceremony
Coin Collectors Forum: April 6, 2008, 2:30 p.m.-4:00 p.m. (MT)
WHERE:
Launch: Capitol Rotunda, State Capitol Building, Santa Fe, NM
Coin Collectors Forum: National Hispanic Cultural Center of New Mexico, 1701 Fourth St. SW, Albuquerque, NM
The U.S. Mint has announced the final designs for the 2008 Statehood quarter series. From Numismatic News:
Finalized designs for 2008-dated state quarters were shown to the public Nov. 27 by the U.S. Mint. These five quarters, honoring Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona, Alaska and Hawaii, bring to an end the popular 50 states quarter series.
Oklahoma’s quarter features the state bird, the Scissortail Flycatcher, flying above the state wildflower, the Indian Blanket. New Mexico selected the Zia sun symbol superimposed over a topographical outline of the state. Arizona has on its quarter a detailed image of the Grand Canyon and the state flower, the Saguaro Cactus.
Reverse of the Alaska quarter shows a grizzly bear emerging from water with a salmon in its jaws and shows the North Star displayed above the inscription “The Great Land.”
The final state quarter, Hawaii, features King Kamehameha I stretching his hand toward the eight major islands of Hawaii.
(Source: Numismaster.com)