And The Award For Worst Commemorative Dollar Design Goes To.

Not only is the design lame, but the commemoration is pretty weak. Not something of national significance in my opinion.

Do these "coins" only have one side?

I'm not sure I can concur,

Though the authorizing legislation for the coins is titled "United States Capitol Visitor Center Commemorative Coin Act of 1999" and directs that all surcharges collected via coin sales to be "deposited in the Capitol Preservation Fund...for the purpose of aiding in the construction, maintenance, and preservation of a Capitol Visitor Center," the coins were meant to commemorate the first meeting of the United States Congress in the new United States Capitol Building in Washington, DC.

The 6th US Congress began its 1st session on December 2, 1799 in Philadelphia, PA; it met in Philadelphia through May 14, 1800. The Congress' 2nd session convened on November 17, 1800 in the new Capitol Building in Washington, DC; the session continued through March 3, 1801. Congress' first meeting in the new US Capitol was fairly brief, lasting approximately 3-1/2 months. The building has been in continuous use ever since!

To me, the event commemorated - the 200th Anniversary of Congress' first meeting at the Capitol - has national significance.

Thank you Commem for clarifying why Congress authorized this coin.

My dad in Korea, 1952. First wound. He got wounded again later that year. He always stressed you didn't get a second Purple Heart. That's the way it was in the Corp, anyways. You got a gold star on the ribbon. He got sent back up on the line and someone noticed he was up there and that after the second wound you are supposed to get rotated back. The next day he was gone.
Upon return his platoon was sent to the Nevada Test Site to participate in an atomic weapons test.
Was released in August '53, married my mom in '54. Passed on in 1982 at age 56.
I still think it's not really a swell looking coin. I think it's a Mercanti design.

Marine draftee.

Following article outlines the opinions on the Korean War commemorative, I've read similar elsewhere:

Though the final design of any USA coin is selected by the secretary of the Treasury, he was required under this law to consult with Korean War Veterans Memorial Advisory Board and the American Battle Monuments Commission. Despite so many opinions, or rather because of this, the resulting coin was confusing and artistically disappointing. The obverse of the Korean War Dollar was designed and sculpted by John Mercanti of the U. S. Mint, who was required to honor all branches of the military. Shown are an Army solder climbing a hillside, while Air Force F-86 fighter planes roar overhead and Navy ships are clustered at the bottom of the coin. The inscriptions "THIRTY EIGHTH ANNIVERSARY COMMEMORATIVE" and "KOREA" appear to the left of the soldier, along with the dual dates 1953 1991 to his right. Eight stars appear just inside the border at upper right in an apparent attempt to balance the imagery, and Mercanti's initials are placed within the stylized waves at lower right. When combined with the statutory legends and mottoes, the outcome is a cluttered mess that ultimately pleased no one. It was assumed by many that the selection of the awkward 38th anniversary for the coining of this commemorative was a reference to the 38th longitudinal parallel, the famous truce line separating North and South Korea at the end of the war. The coin's backers would have been well advised to support this notion, but instead they denied it, affirming in the minds of most collectors that this coin's primary significance was as a fundraiser. The reverse of this coin is somewhat simpler in its elements, but no less confusing in its choice of imagery. A map of the Korean Peninsula shows North Korea with diagonal shading, while South Korea is plain, except for the placement of its national symbol at dead center, an icon largely unknown to Americans. The peninsula is divided at the truce line along the 38th parallel, and the head of an American eagle appears at right. Beneath the eagle is the coin's mintmark, while the initials of U. S. Mint Sculptor-Engraver T. James Ferrell appear beneath the peninsula. The balance of the design is composed of statutory inscriptions. A first striking ceremony for this coin was held at the Philadelphia Mint on May 6, 1991. Buyers were offered the usual pre-issue discounts on Uncirculated and Proof coins. The Uncirculated examples were struck at the Denver Mint ('D' mintmark) and priced at $23 through May 31, after which time the price rose to $26. Philadelphia ('P') coined the proof edition, and this was priced at $28 and $31, respectively. Much was made by the Mint of this coin's lower than usual production limit of just one million pieces. This lower figure was based on the declining sales of several recent commemorative programs, but the Mint capitalized on it as a means of making the coin more appealing to collectors. Buyers were warned that deliveries to individual customers might be limited, should a sell-out occur. It turned out that no one was denied their purchases, as total sales came under the one million coin limit, with more than 100,000 pieces to spare. As was customary with unsold commemorative coins, these were later melted.

There are a few commemorative dollars with lack luster designs. The bill of rights dollar from 1993 falls into this category for me.





And then there is the 1995 Special Olympics