How quaint.
Reminds me of the only OTHER coin I've seen that uses that kind of edge-stamping. Guess what country it is that uses that style?
MEXICO!
Posted on 11/26/2006 9:44:48 PM PST by Atlas Sneezed
Remember the Eisenhower Dollar? Now that was a dollar’s dollar. It was twice as big as a quarter and felt heavier than it really was and when you had one in your pocket, you knew it was there. One of the reasons that later dollar-coin attempts failed was that their size shrank to smaller than a 50-cent piece. This caused the Susan B. Anthony coin to be nicknamed the “Carter Quarter” because so many people were spending them as 25-cent pieces by mistake.
Despite past failures, the U.S. Mint announced at a ceremony at The Smithsonian Institution on Monday that they would try again. They will begin circulating a new dollar coin on February 15, 2007. It will still be the same size as the 1979 Susan B. Anthony and the 2000-2002 Sacajawea. The coin will also be made of the same gold colored material as the Sacajawea with an additonal compound added to the metal to keep it from tarnishing as fast as its predecessor did.
The new dollars are set to feature the past Presidents of the United States in order from George Washington to Richard M. Nixon. Instead of a textured or ridged edge, the smooth rim will now hold such features as the mintmark, the date of striking, and the mottos “In God We Trust” and "E Pluribus Unum.” The design change is intended to allow space for larger portraits of the Presidents on the obverse side, and the Statue of Liberty on the reverse.
For the first time the coin will say “$1” instead of “One Dollar.”
The criteria for the presidents is that they must have been dead two years to be featured, so the current list will end at Richard M. Nixon. Grover Cleveland will actually be featured on two different coins because he held office in two non-consecutive terms.
The coins will be distributed every three months starting next year with Washington. Despite the fact that the mint has a three-and-a-half year stockpile of over $200 million worth of the Sacajawea coins, political pressure will force them to continue minting the Sacajawea coins at the same time.
The current distribution schedule is for each coin to be circulated for three months, and then the next will appear in sequence as follows:
2007
George Washington John Adams Thomas Jefferson James Madison
2008
James Monroe John Quincy Adams Andrew Jackson Martin Van Buren
2009
William Henry Harrison John Tyler James K. Polk Zachary Taylor
2010
Millard Fillmore Franklin Pierce James Buchanon Abraham Lincoln
2011
Andrew Johnson Ulysses S. Grant Rutherford B. Hayes James A. Garfield
2012
Chester A. Arthur Grover Cleveland Benjamin Harrison Grover Cleveland
2013
William McKinley Theodore Roosevelt William H. Taft Woodrow Wilson
2014
Warren Harding Calvin Coolidge Herbert Hoover Franklin D. Roosevelt
2015
Harry S. Truman Dwight D. Eisenhower John F. Kennedy Lyndon B. Johnson
2016
Richard M. Nixon
The paper U.S. dollar bill has always been a problem for the mint. A coin is more durable and lasts longer, making it more cost effective. However since the demise of the Eisenhower Dollar coin, the public has mostly rejected all of its smaller replacements. It is speculated that replacing the dollar bill with a coin could save the U.S. $500 million annually in printing costs, not counting the periodic security redesigns. Canada and various European countries have successfully eliminated their basic currency paper notes, but resistance is strong against such a move by the United States. An additional factor in the opposition of a dollar coin replacing the paper bill is that a stack of $100 in “singles” is relatively light, compared to a pocket weighed down by the same amount of coins.
Some have speculated that the new coins were intentionally designed to go directly into collections, instead of everyday commerce, making the U.S. dollar more scarce and thus more valuable. Other studies have shown that the only way the American public would accept dollar coins is if the paper currency were completely taken out of circulation.
The timing would seem to indicate that the announcement was held up until after the November 2006 elections. The religious right wing of the Republican Party is sure to be outraged when they notice that “In God We Trust,” while still on the coin, is no longer featured prominently.
In a side announcement, there will also be a release of 24-karat $10 pieces featuring the First Ladies at the end of 2007, and also the penny will be redesigned four times in 2009 to honor Abraham Lincoln.
Commemoratives are legal tender.
Only a few have ever been released at face value however.
(Unsold Isabella quarters were dumped into circulation in 1893 for example.
The State Quarters are circulating commemoratives.)
And many early commemoratives were put in circulation during the Depression when their owners were short of cash.
If the price of gold and silver ever fell below face value, you would see them circulate.
Go see what they make at the US mint webpage. These are investment coins, although they are easy to turn back into cash. Congress authorized the sale of $50 gold bullion American Eagle coins back in 1986. They list from $885 down to $85. They also have plantinum and silver American Eagles.
The $50 American Buffalo 24 K gold coins authorized in 2005 are really nice for $800. There is also a SF mint $5 gold coin for $255
Not here in Hawaii.
I remember that some stations in KC changed their pumps so that they metered gasoline by the quart, rather than by the gallon. And one enterprising station decided to try selling gasoline by the liter... That lasted less than a week!
Mark
I'd guess those would be bullion pieces, like the Eagles and gold Buffalos. If they were made as currency they would be smaller than dimes.
i suppose they could, probably easier to get rid of, but it seems like it would be a pain in the butt.
Of course we could drop the $1 and $2 bills, and let there be overlap with both $5 bill and coin.
Dropping the $1 bill sounds good to me, but I’d like the $2 bill to start circulating again, and the nickel to hang around for a few more years. A penny isn’t worth bending over to pick up.
How quaint.
Reminds me of the only OTHER coin I've seen that uses that kind of edge-stamping. Guess what country it is that uses that style?
MEXICO!
There are still a couple of living ex-presidents who are ahead of him in the order. By 2016 it is probable one or both would be dead for at least two years. It wouldn't surprise me if 1-4 ex-presidents get added to the list for 2016.
Would you rather have 50 $1 bills in your pocket or 50 $1 coins?
So stupid and such a waste.
I'm sure that NCR, Casio and any other cash register companies would like that plan!
"Parking meters are long gone in many cities."
Really? Tell that to Chicago.
"the efficiency of the system"
You have too much free time.
They don't round to the nearest dime. Gee you want to get rid of nickles, too? I think you are going to have to found your own country. The difference between the 1/2 penny and the penny and nickle is that these are useful measurements to have in any decimal system. One big gripe that I would have about dollar coins (which are worth what quarters were in the '70s) is that dollars are whole numbers (whereas non-dollar coins are fractions of a dollar), and fit in very neatly in the cash drawer with fives, tens and twenties. You might think that people are happy to move over the decimal point. They are not. I love to stump my Canadian friends by asking them what a decimeter is. They cannot remember if it is a tenth of a meter, or ten meters. It is never used. Hence, the too small centimeter and the too large meter wind up doing double and triple duty. (Moreover, the mind does not visualize tenths as easily as quarters or eights).
Anyway, this ultimately comes down to a matter of opinion, and for now, the over-whelming opinion is for dollar bills, nickles and even pennies. By all means, try to change minds. But please, do not support a measure that would "force acceptance" in this democratic Republic. Jimmy Carter tried to do that with metric and the results were awful. (The results of a half-successful coercion in Canada are very awful).
"Not here in Hawaii."
???
I have no idea what this means.
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