The United States Mint today announced a joint product venture with the United States Postal Service for a coin and stamp series. The 50 State Quarters Greetings from America Series will combine the popular 50 State Quarters and the celebrated Greetings from America stamps.
“We think these products will be very popular because they bring two of the most sought — after collectibles together for numismatists and philatelists alike,” said United States Mint Director Henrietta Holsman Fore. “s millions already know, coin collecting and stamp collecting are hobbies that celebrate our history, heritage and national character.”
The 50 State Quarters Greetings from America Portfolio – available for $29.99 each – consists of five circulating quality state quarters and five corresponding state stamps in a portfolio, with a matching slipcase that includes a certificate of authenticity signed by Director Fore and Postmaster General Jack Potter.
Baseball card–sized 50 State Quarters Greetings from America State Cards are also available. The state cards consist of one circulating quality state quarter and the corresponding state stamp. They can be purchased in a set that includes all five from a given year for $27.99 from the United States Mint.
The new products will be available for sale through the United States Mint website www.usmint.gov, toll–free ordering at 1–800–USA–MINT, and through the United States Postal Service website www.usps.com/shop or 1–800–STAMP–24.
The 2002 portfolios and cards are now available. Later this year, customers will be able to purchase portfolios and state cards featuring the 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2003 state quarters with their corresponding stamps. The remaining years of the 50 State Quarters Program – 2004 through 2008 – will be available annually.
A release celebration will be held on January 10, 2003, at the Mall of America in Bloomington, MN. Miss America Erika Harold, Director Fore and USPS Chief Marketing Officer Anita Bizzotto all will be on hand for the unveiling and to sign autographs. The event will begin at 10:30 a.m. CST in the main rotunda.
Launched in 1999, the United States Mint’s 50 State Quarters Program is a 10–year initiative that honors each of the states in the order that they joined the Union. Each quarter is produced for about 10 weeks and will never be produced again. Surveys show that over 139 million adults are collecting the quarters, of which five are released in any given year.
Created by Congress in 1792, the United States Mint is the manufacturer of legal tender coinage for the United States. In fiscal year 2002, the United States Mint manufactured approximately 15 billion coins and generated revenue of $1.8 billion. With facilities in five states and the District of Columbia, the United States Mint has customers in 54 countries and is the world’s 30th largest e–retailer. For more information, please visit www.usmint.gov.