CUSTER, S.D. — The United States Mint today launched the America the Beautiful Quarters® Program coin honoring Mount Rushmore National Memorial. Inspiration for the coin’s reverse design was drawn from photos of men putting the final details to Thomas Jefferson’s face. This is the 20th coin in the America the Beautiful Quarters Program, the United States Mint’s multi–year initiative to honor our national parks and other national sites.
“This new quarter reflects our continued fascination with the majestic Mount Rushmore National Memorial and the enduring legacies of the four leaders whose faces have become one with the Black Hills,” said David Croft, Acting Associate Director for Manufacturing at the United States Mint.
Approximately 2,000 people were in attendance at the event, including hundreds of local schoolchildren. The event took place at the National Guard Armory in Custer, several miles from the granite sculpture. Special guest Nick Clifford, the last surviving worker who helped carve the memorial, participated in the event. Additional participants included Custer Chamber of Commerce Executive Director David Ressler, who served as master of ceremonies, and Mount Rushmore Superintendent Cheryl A. Schreier. Following the event, members of the public exchanged their currency for $10 rolls of newly minted Mount Rushmore National Memorial quarters. In addition to the launch ceremony and coin exchange, the United States Mint also hosted a public coin forum the previous evening to discuss the bureau’s programs and initiatives.
The Federal Reserve Bank released Mount Rushmore National Memorial quarters produced for general circulation on November 4. The same day, the United States Mint began accepting orders for collectible bags and rolls of coins with the Mount Rushmore National Memorial design struck at its facilities in Denver, Philadelphia, and San Francisco. The bureau is accepting orders for these products at its online catalog, http://www.usmint.gov/catalog, and at 1–800–USA–MINT (872–6468). Hearing– and speech–impaired customers with TTY equipment may order by calling 1–888–321–MINT (6468).
The bureau is administering the America the Beautiful Quarters Program in accordance with Public Law 110–456, the America’s Beautiful National Parks Quarter Dollar Coin Act of 2008. Each year until 2020, five new quarters will be released with reverse designs representing the honored national sites. The final coin in the program will be released in 2021. The quarters are being issued in the order in which the honored site was established.
The United States Mint was created by Congress in 1792 and became part of the Department of the Treasury in 1873. It is the Nation’s sole manufacturer of legal tender coinage and is responsible for producing circulating coinage for the Nation to conduct its trade and commerce. The United States Mint also produces numismatic products, including proof, uncirculated, and commemorative coins; Congressional Gold Medals; and silver and gold bullion coins. The United States Mint’s numismatic programs are self–sustaining and operate at no cost to the taxpayer.