Commems Collection Modern: What If? 2013 Invasion Of Pennsylvania 150th Anniversary - Part II

Over my years here on CCF, I've often written about commemorative coin programs that saw proposals introduced in the House of Representatives ("House") as well as the Senate. Sometimes the two chambers considered companion bills (i.e., identical bills), sometimes they considered bills that were related (i.e., similar but not exactly the same) and other times the bills each considered were markedly different.

This time out, I'm circling back to a story I posted back in July 2025 (see: What If? 2013 Invasion Of Pennsylvania 150th Anniversary) to dive into a pair of related bills that sought to "require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in recognition of and to commemorate the 1863 invasion of Pennsylvania, the Battle of Gettysburg, and President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address."

Note: The Short Title of the bills to be discussed was "1863 Gettysburg Campaign Act".

The previous bill I discussed was introduced in the House by Todd Russell Platts (R-PA) in April 2009; the bill stalled in the House Committee on Financial Services. In October 2009, Representative Platts re-introduced his commemorative coin bill. It continued to call for a three-coin commemorative program with up to 100,000 Gold Half Eagles, up to 500,000 Silver Dollars and up to 750,000 Copper-Nickel (CuNi) Clad Half Dollars.

Platts' re-introduced bill included the same "Findings" as his first. and authorized collection of the same $35/$10/$5 surchages (respectively), with the surcharges collected again to be split 50/50 between the Gettysburg Foundation and the Army Heritage Center Foundation.

So, Platts' second attempt to secure a "Pennsylvania Invasion" commemorative coin program was a duplicate of his first. The same can't be said for the bill introduced in the Senate.

In February 2010, during the Second Session of the 111th Congress, Arlen Specter (D-PA) introduced a similar, but different coin bill.

The Senate bill also proposed a three-coin program - Gold Half Eagle, Silver Dollar and Copper-Nickel ("CuNi") Clad Half Dollar - but set different mintage limits for each. Specter's bill requested 75,000 Gold Half Eagles (vs. 100,000), 350,000 Silver Dollars (vs. 500,000) and 100,000 Clad Half Dollars (vs. 750,000).

Note: The Clad Half Dollar mintage specification seems out of place to me (when compared to the Silver Dollar mintage request), I've long wondered if the published version of the bill had a typo and was meant to read "1,000,000" half dollars instead.

The Senate bill also differed slightly in the presentation of its "Findings" section:

"The Congress finds that--

"(1) the 1863 invasion of Pennsylvania and the resulting Battle of Gettysburg proved decisive in the final outcome of the American Civil War; (same)

(2) President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address put the Civil War in perspective as a test of the success of the American Revolution; (same)

(3) the Army Heritage Center Foundation (in this Act referred to as the "AHCF") works with the United States Army to establish, sponsor, support, promote, and maintain the United States Army Heritage and Education Center (in this Act referred to as the "AHEC") at Carlisle, Pennsylvania; wording modified

(4) the AHEC is the Army's premier center for the study of the role of the individual soldier in support of the Nation, and its Civil War photograph and manuscript collection is considered one of the finest in the Nation; modified, combines two Findings of House bill

(5) the AHEC seeks to honor the service and sacrifice of soldiers and their families, preserve the memories of their service by gathering and preserving artifact and manuscript collections, and educate the public through a world class archives, museum displays, and engaging educational programs; slight wording modification, renumbered

(6) the goal of the AHEC is to promote an appreciation of the sacrifices that generations of American soldiers and their families have made to safeguard the freedoms of the Nation; slight wording modification, renumbered

(7) the AHCF will, through donated support, fund and construct the public components of the AHEC, the Visitor and Education Center and the Army Heritage Museum, and once construction is complete, focus on providing "margin of excellence support" to meet the needs of educational programs and other activities at the AHEC where Federal funds are unavailable; slight wording modification, renumbered

(8) the Gettysburg Foundation is dedicated to supporting Gettysburg National Military Park, part of the National Park Service, by--

(A) operating the new Museum and Visitor Center for the park;

(B) funding the preservation and rehabilitation of the park's resources;

(C) preserving and displaying the Cyclorama painting; and

(D) providing visitors with an understanding of the significance of the Battle of Gettysburg within the context of the causes and consequences of the American Civil War;

same text, renumbered

(9) the AHCF and the Gettysburg Foundation--

(A) are nongovernmental, member-based, and publicly supported non-profit organizations that are dependent on funds from members, donations, and grants for support; and

(B) use such support to help create and sustain the Gettysburg National Military Park and the Army Heritage and Education Center;

reformatted, combines two Findings of House bill

(10) the Gettysburg Foundation is recognized as the official partner of Gettysburg National Military Park; and modified, split from one House bill Finding

(11) the AHCF is recognized by the Secretary of the Army as the lead agency supporting the development of the AHEC. modified, split from one House bill Finding

The Senate bill continued the $35/$10/$5 per coin surcharge amounts, respectively, but altered the surcharge distribution model: the Gettysburg Foundation was to receive two-thirds of collected surcharges (vs. half) and the Army Heritage Center Foundation was to receive one-third (vs. half).

So, while the Senate bill was largely the same as the House bill in terms of objectives, there were clear differences that would have had measurable financial impacts. For example, the House bills had the potential to generate $12.25 million in surcharges (if the program sold out), while the Senate bill would have maxed out at $6.625 million - a difference of $5.625 million (~54% of House bill's potential).

Platts' re-introduced House bill was referred to the House Committee on Financial Services. The Senate bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. Neither bill progressed further; each died for lack of action when the 111th Congress adjourned.


For a closer look at Representative Platts' original House bill, see:

- What If? 2013 Invasion Of Pennsylvania 150th Anniversary


For more of my stories about commemorative coins and medals, including other What If? stories, see: Commems Collection.