The Coin Analyst: Have Circulating Commemorative Programs Outlasted Their Welcome?
A
major new bill that will create several new series of circulating commemorative quarters and other coins has just become law. Unfortunately, it risks repeating several of the mistakes of other recent coin programs of this type.
In the annals of American numismatics, many circulating coin programs have played a key role in stimulating greater interest in the hobby and increasing the ranks of collectors. This includes, of course, coins such as
Lincoln cents,
Washington quarters, and
Walking Liberty half dollars, among others – sets of which at one time could be started, and in some cases completed, from circulation.
Everything You Need to Know About Washington Quarters
George Washington’s 1732 birth. The
United States Congress ultimately approved a one-year quarter dollar that was issued in 1932 to the tune of over 6.2 million coins (5.4 million from
Philadelphia, 436,800 from
Denver, and 408,000 from
San Francisco) at a time when that was quite a large mintage. The coin was so popular with the public that it returned in 1934 as an ongoing release that is still issued and widely collected today.
Just as many older collectors got started with silver
Washington quarters in their youth, many younger and newer collectors today start by collecting the current series of Washington quarters – although it is harder to do this from circulation as it was in decades past.