Exactly one year after the Apollo 11 moon landing on July 20, 1969, Representative Edward R. Roybal (D-CA) introduced a bill in the House of Representatives that called for "50-cent pieces to commemorate the Apollo Moon Landing and to assist in the construction of the National Air and Space Museum." Upon its introduction, the bill was referred to the House Committee on Banking and Currency.
The bill sought up to one million half dollars of standard specifications. The Smithsonian Institution was the sponsor of the coin and it was to use all net proceeds it collected to support the construction of the National Air and Space Museum.
The US Congress authorized the construction of the new National Air and Space Museum building in 1966 to house and display the Museum's growing collection. The Museum was originally known as the National Air Museum (established by the US Congress on August 12, 1946), though parts of its collection date to the 1876 Centennial Exposition. Congress' appropriation of funds in 1971 enabled construction to proceed in earnest, allowing the ground breaking ceremony for the new museum building on the National Mall was held on November 20, 1972. The Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum opened on July 1, 1976.
National Air and Space Museum Building Under Construction, 1973
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(Image Credit: Smithsonian Institution. Public Domain.)The bill was not reported out of Committee and was not considered outside of Committee. When the 91st Congress adjourned, the bill died for lack of action. A successful sale of the coins would have added greatly to the financing of the museum's construction, but it was not to be - the American tax payer (i.e, Congressional appropriations) paid the majority of the bill (private donations also played a role).
I remember visiting the new Museum facility a year or two after it opened - it was an impressive sight for a young boy enthralled by flight and space. I have to believe I would have "begged" my parents to get me one of these coins had they been struck. Oh, well...
For other of my posts about commemorative coins and medals, including other What If? stories from the classic and modern eras of US commemorative coins, see:
Commems Collection.
Posted 11/13/2023 05:34 am
