Commems Collection Classic: What If? Phantom 1942 Alaska Purchase 75th Anniversary

Here's a "phantom" whose details were 'off the record' - way off!/i]

A February 1942 news brief in The Minneapolis Star reported:

This is the 75th anniversary of the purchase of Alaska and the government is seriously considering issuance of a commemorative coin.

When I first saw this, I was a bit surprised considering the recent events of December 7, 1941, but I began my search through the records of the United States ("US") Congress to gather the details regarding the potential coin. I looked and searched from multiple angles in the records of the House of Representatives and Senate, but did not find any reference to an Alaska Purchase 75th Anniversary commemorative coin being proposed in 1940, 1941 or 1942.

[i]Note: Secretary of State William Seward agreed to a proposal from the Russian Minister in Washington, Edouard de Stoeckl, to purchase Alaska for $7.2 million on March 30, 1867. The Senate approved the treaty of purchase on April 9; President Andrew Johnson signed the treaty on May 28, and Alaska was formally transferred to the United States on October 18, 1867. (Office of the Historian, United States Department of State web site.)

With no coin or medal bill introduced in Congress, "seriously considering" seems a bit hyperbolic on the part of Cedric Adams, the author of the piece.

As the US was still figuring out how to manage its recent entry into World War II, commemorative coins were not a focus for the US Congress.

In 1967, to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the Alaska Purchase, the US Mint struck a National Medal - at Congress' direction - to mark the occasion. (You can read about it here: 1967 Alaska Purchase Centennial Medal.


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