Commems Collection Classic: Quick Bits #57 - City Commemorative Coins

Following up on my posts about State Commemorative Coins and County Commemorative Coins, here's a post that takes a quick look at the ten (10) commemorative half dollars of the classic era that celebrate specific US cities.

In alphabetical order:

1. Albany, NY (1936): The coins were struck "in commemoration of the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the founding founding of the city of Albany, New York."

2. Cleveland, OH (1936): The coins were struck "in commemoration of the centennial anniversary in 1936 of the city of Cleveland, Ohio, to be known as the Great Lakes Exposition, and to commemorate Cleveland's contribution to the industrial progress of the United States for the past one hundred years."

3. Bridgeport, CT: The coins were struck "in commemoration of the one hundredth anniversary of the incorporation of the city of Bridgeport, Connecticut."

4. Columbia, SC: The coins were struck "in commemoration of the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the capital of South Carolina at Columbia, South Carolina."

5. Elgin, IL: The coins were struck "in commemoration of the one-hundredth anniversary of the founding of the city of Elgin, Illinois, and the erection of the heroic Pioneer Memorial."

6. Hudson, NY: The coins were struck "in commemoration of the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the founding the city of Hudson, New York."

7. Lynchburg, VA: The coins were struck "in commemoration of the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the issuance of the charter to the city of Lynchburg, Virginia."

8. New Rochelle. NY: The coins were struck "in commemoration of the two-hundred-and-fiftieth anniversary of the founding and settlement of the city of New Rochelle, New York,"

9. Norfolk, VA: The coins were struck "in commemoration of the three-hundredth anniversary of the original Norfolk (Virginia) land grant and the two-hundredth anniversary of the establishment of the city of Norfolk, Virginia, as a borough."

10. Providence, RI: The coins were struck "in commemoration of the three hundredth anniversary of the founding of the city of Providence, Rhode Island."


Honorable Mention:

- Cincinnati, OH: The coins were struck "in commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary in 1936 of the city of Cincinnati, Ohio, as a center of music, and to commemorate Cincinnati's contribution to the art of music in the United States for the past fifty years."

The coin doesn't mark a true city milestone, but rather a fictitious anniversary of the city's alleged role as "a center of music." The coin does, however, celebrate a city vs. a county or a state!

IMO, putting together a set of "city" commemorative coins would make for a nice, topical short set of US commemorative coins!

For my previous Statehood and County Commemorative coins "Quick Bits" posts , see:

- Quick Bits #04 - Statehood Commemorative Coins
- Quick Bits #56 - Country Commemorative Coins


For more on all of the commemorative coins listed above, and my posts on other commemorative coins and medals, have a look at: Commems Collection.