WASHINGTON — The United States Mint announced today that commemorative quarter–dollar coins honoring Oregon, the third coin in the United States Mint’s 50 State Quarters Program to be released in 2005, will go on sale beginning June 6, 2005, at 12:00 noon (ET), and will be available for purchase during the 10–week release period. The Oregon quarter–dollars are available in two–roll sets (40 coins per roll), including one roll each from the United States Mint at Philadelphia and Denver, and in bags of 100 and 1,000 coins.
On February 14, 1859, Oregon became the 33rd state to be admitted into the Union, and the Oregon quarter is the 33rd coin to be issued in the United States Mint’s popular 50 State Quarters Program. The reverse design features Crater Lake, the deepest lake in the United States, viewed from the south–southwest rim. The design incorporates Wizard Island, as well as Watchman and Hillman Peaks, on the lake’s rim and conifers. The coin bears the inscription “Crater Lake.”
Crater Lake is a unique and stunning natural treasure, formed more than 7,700 years ago by the collapse of Mt. Mazama in what is now southern Oregon. At 1,949 feet, it is the deepest lake in the United States and the seventh deepest in the world, and has a record clarity depth of 134 feet. The main cause of Crater Lake’s remarkable clarity is its isolation from incoming streams and rivers.
Each coin roll in the two–roll set is wrapped in a specially designed United States Mint paper coin wrap that prominently displays the 50 State Quarters Program logo, a “P” or “D” representing the roll’s mint of origin, “OR” designating the State of Oregon, and “$10” representing its dollar value. Two–roll sets will sell for $32.00, bags of 100 coins for $35.50, and bags of 1,000 coins for $300.00. Each bag is marked with the mint of origin and the dollar value of its contents ($25.00 or $250.00). These two–roll sets and bags feature quarters used in regular transactions and are struck on our main production floors at the United States Mint at Philadelphia and Denver. There is no order limit on these products.
Customers can purchase the Oregon quarter–dollars in two–roll sets and bags by using the United States Mint’s secure website, www.usmint.gov, or by calling 1–800–USA–MINT (872–6468). As an added convenience, customers can participate in a subscription–ordering program in which specific products, such as two–roll sets and bags, are charged and shipped to the customer automatically as each new quarter is released. For more information about this ordering method, please visit www.usmint.gov. Hearing– and speech–impaired customers may order by calling 1–888–321–MINT (6468). A shipping and handling fee of $4.95 per order will be added to all domestic orders. Quarter bags of 1,000 coins will have an additional charge of $7.95 per bag because of their weight and size.