The Act that authorized the 1926 American Independence Sesquicentennial coins (silver and gold) specified that the coins were to be struck "In commemoration of the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence." Makes one wonder if any US commemorative coins of the classic era depicted a signer of the historic document?
- George Washington? No. (1900 Lafayette Memorial Dollar, 1926 American Independence Sesquicentennial Half Dollar)
- Abraham Lincoln? Definitely Not! - he wasn't born yet! (1918 Illinois Statehood Centennial Half Dollar)
- Ulysses S. Grant? No - he wasn't born yet! (1922 Grant Birth Centenary coins)
- James Monroe? No. (1923 Monroe Doctrine Centennial Half Dollar)
- John Quincy Adams? No (though his father John Adams did). (1923 Monroe Doctrine Centennial Half Dollar)
Didn't even one of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence get honored with a US commemorative coin?
As a matter of fact - "Yes!" One was honored and he was a central figure in the document's creation. None other than, Thomas Jefferson.
Jefferson was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence and was one of the signers of Virginia's delegation to the Second Continental Congress that met in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania beginning in May 1775. Jefferson was born on April 13, 1743 in Shadwell, Virginia. (Shadwell is on the Rivanna River near Charlottesville in northern Virginia.) Jefferson died, poetically, on July 4, 1826 - the 50th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence's signing - at home in Monticello.
Jefferson was depicted on one type of the 1903 Louisiana Purchase Exposition Gold Dollar (William McKinley is featured on the other type).
1903 Louisiana Purchase Gold Dollar - Jefferson Type
1926 Declaration of Independence Gold Quarter Eagle
1926 Declaration of Independence Silver Half Dollar
Posted 10/07/2024 06:23 am
