The US Mint struck a variety of medals for the American Revolution Bicentennial Administration ("ARBA") during the United States' ("US") Bicentennial years (you can read about them here:
1976 ARBC/ARBA National Medals and here:
Official PNC (Philatelic Numismatic Cover) Thread.
The largest potential ARBA medal series "got away," however, as a result of lack of support during the 94th Congress.
In June 1975 Joseph George Minish (D-NJ) and Frank Annunzio (D-IL) each introduced a bill that called for up to 21 national commemorative medals that commemorated "the contributions by individuals of various ethnic backgrounds who contributed to the founding of the United States of America." No specific individuals were identified in the bills; the selection task, however, was assigned to ARBA. The two bills were identical.
The medal bills would have authorized up to 25,000 medals of up to 21 different designs with the potential for medals of various sizes and compositions. Imagine, if the medals were struck in gold, silver and bronze in two sizes each, a "completist" collector would have been faced with the daunting task of having to collect 126 medals! Wow!
Each of the medal bills was referred to the House Committee on Banking, Currency and Housing with a subsequent referral to its Subcommittee on Historic Preservation and Coinage. The Subcommittee held a Hearing in September 1975 that included the two bills on its agenda.
US Mint Director Mary Brooks testified at the Hearing and stated that the Treasury/Mint had no objections to the medal bills, but let the Subcommittee know that the Mint would not be capable of producing the full series in time for the 1976 Bicentennial, but that it could produce it before the December 31, 1983 deadline specified in the bills.
Neither bill, however, gained the support of the Subcommittee and each died for lack of action when the Congress adjourned.
I think the bills proposed what would have been an interesting series, but its open-ended parameters had the potential to create one that would have been overwhelming for most collectors. It was likely best that the series did not come to fruition. A smaller series with the same theme would have been more palatable.
For other of my posts about commemorative coins and medals, including more What If? stories, see:
Commems Collection.
Posted 10/09/2025 4:54 pm
