In a previous post about the
Star-Spangled Banner ("SSB") coin,
What If? 2012 Star-Spangled Banner And War Of 1812 Bicentennial), I stated:
Quote:
History tells us, however, that when the coin bill was re-introduced in the 111th Congress, it fared better - it also included a Gold Half Eagle. The two-coin commemorative coin program was successfully authorized by Congress and signed into law by US President Barack Obama. (Might be a good topic for a future post!)
The future is here!
Companion bills were introduced in the United States ("US") Senate and House of Representatives ("House") in March and April 2009, respectively, during the 111th Congress. The Senate bill was introduced by Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD); the House bill by C A "Dutch" Ruppersberger (D-MD). Cardin and Ruppersberger were the sponsors of similar coin legislation introduced in the 110th Congress (and previously discussed).
The first thing to notice about the new bills is that they dropped the specific reference to the War of 1812 Bicentennial in their Title - the focus was concentrated on the "bicentennial of the writing of the
Star-Spangled Banner". Representative Ruppersberger did not completely separate the events, however, stating during consideration of the new bill, "The $1 silver coin will be minted in 2012 for the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812."
in terms of core messaging, the "Findings" section of the new bills mirrored the previous proposals, but incorporated additional detail:
"The Congress finds as follows:
(1) During the Battle for Baltimore of the War of 1812, Francis Scott Key visited the British fleet in the Chesapeake Bay on September 7, 1814, to secure the release of Dr. William Beanes, who had been captured after the British burned Washington, DC.
(2) The release of Dr. Beanes was secured, but Key and Beanes were held by the British during the shelling of Fort McHenry, one of the forts defending Baltimore.
(3) On the morning of September 14, 1814, after the 25-hour British bombardment of Fort McHenry, Key peered through the clearing smoke to see a 42-foot by 30-foot American flag flying proudly atop the Fort.
(4) He was so inspired to see the enormous flag still flying over the Fort that he began penning a song, which he named The Defence of Fort McHenry, to commemorate the occasion and he included a note that it should be sung to the tune of the popular British melody To Anacreon in Heaven.
(5) In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson ordered that the anthem, which had been popularly renamed the Star-Spangled Banner, be played at military and naval occasions.
(6) On March 3, 1931, President Herbert Hoover signed a resolution of Congress that officially designated the Star-Spangled Banner as the National Anthem of the United States."The biggest change seen in the new bills was the change to the coin program itself. Instead of just a Silver Dollar, the new bills also included specifications for a Gold Half Eagle. Maximum mintage levels for the coins were specified as 100,000 for the Gold Half Eagle, and 500,000 for the Silver Dollar. (The SSB coin bills of the 110th Congress proposed the minting of up to 350,000 Silver Dollars.)
The designs for the coins were to "be emblematic of the War of 1812 and particularly the Battle for Baltimore that formed the basis for the
Star-Spangled Banner." The coins were to include the standard inscriptions and be dated "2012".
The coin designs were to be selected by the Secretary of the Treasury after consulting with the Maryland War of 1812 Bicentennial Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts; the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee was to serve in a design review capacity.
The Issue price of each coin was to include a surcharge:
- $35 per Gold Half Eagle
- $10 per Silver Dollar
Collected surcharge were to be paid to the Maryland War of 1812 Bicentennial Commission "for the purpose of supporting bicentennial activities, educational outreach activities (including supporting scholarly research and the development of exhibits), and preservation and improvement activities pertaining to the sites and structures relating to the War of 1812."
The House bill was referred to the House Committee on Financial Services; the Senate bill to the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. The House bill was passed under a suspension of the rules (i.e., without a report from its Committee). The Senate passed the House version of the bill in lieu of its own bill. US President Barack Obama signed the bill into Public Law on August 16, 2010.
The story continues in Part II
2012 Star-Spangled Banner Bicentennial - The CoinsFor other of my posts about commemorative coins and medals, including more about modern US commemorative coins, see:
Commems Collection
Posted 12/14/2025 3:12 pm
