Commems Collection Classic: 1936 San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge - Redux

Following up on my 2012 post...

The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge Half Dollar was struck "in celebration of the opening of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge." (Public Law 74-820)

The Senate bill proposing the coin had contemporary competition in the House from a bill looking to celebrate "the completion of the bridges in the San Francisco Bay area." The House bill was intended to recognize the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, as well as the Golden Gate Bridge; the construction timelines for the two bridges overlapped. The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge opened on November 12, 1936; the Golden Gate Bridge opened about six months later on May 27, 1937.

As originally written, the House bill proposed 250,000 half dollars be struck "at the mints of the United States" (i.e., P/D/S sets would have been possible). The proposed coins were sponsored by the San Francisco Bay Exposition, Inc. (The Exposition company was in place to plan, organize and stage the Golden Gate International Exposition (GGIE) of 1939-40.)

The bill was passed by the House and sent to the Senate, where it was referred to the Senate Committee on Banking and Currency. The bill's journey ended there, as the Senate bill intended specifically for the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, sponsored by the San Francisco Clearing House Association, took priority. The Senate bill was favorably viewed by the Committee and was reported out, including amendments, with a recommendation for passage.

As the original Senate bill already included language limiting the coins to a single mint, a single date and with an expiration date for coining authority, the Committee did not offer substitute language for the bill, but rather just amended the minimum order size for the coins to read "25,000" vs. the original "five thousand". The amended version of the bill was passed by the Whole Senate without issue and was sent ot the House for concurrence.

While it acknowledged that the Senate had passed a different Bridge coin bill than it had, the House had no issue with consideration of the Senate bill - it was passed via Unanimous Consent without debate. (For those wondering, per the Senate.gov Glossary: unanimous consent: Agreement on any question or matter before the Senate that sets aside a rule of procedure to expedite proceedings. Many requests for unanimous consent (u.c.) are routine but if any senator objects, the request is rejected. )

With concurrence achieved, the bill was engrossed and signed in each chamber, then presented to the President for signature. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed the commemorative coin bill into law on June 26, 1936.

From my perspective, the coin proposed by the House would have made for the better commemorative half dollar. It's too bad San Francisco Bay Exposition, Inc. did not work with a California Senator to get their bill introduced in Congress - it might have had a very different outcome!


1936 San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge Half Dollar



See: Here or Here, for the story of how a proposed 1937 amendment to the coin's Act sought to celebrate the Golden Gste Bridge.

For more on the designs and specifications of the Bay Bridge half dollar, see:

- 1936 San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge
- 1936 San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge - Ephemera
- 1936 San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge - Distant Cousin
- 1936 San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge - Coins Depicting Places Thread


For other of my posts about commemorative coins and medals, check out: Commems Collection.