ROSEMONT, IL – The United States Mint (Mint) unveiled the official designs today for the final six coins in the America the Beautiful Quarters® Program. The unveiling took place at the American Numismatic Association’s World’s Fair of Money in the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center.
The first five designs will appear on the reverses (tails) of quarters set for release in 2020 honoring the National Park of American Samoa (American Samoa), Weir Farm National Historic Site (Connecticut), Salt River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve (U.S. Virgin Islands), Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park (Vermont), and Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve (Kansas). The design for the sixth and final coin in the program will honor the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site in Alabama, which is set for release in 2021.
Artists in the Mint’s Artistic Infusion Program (AIP) created the designs, which the Mint’s Sculptor-Engravers sculpted.
National Park of American Samoa
- Designer: Richard Masters
- Sculptor-Engraver: Phebe Hemphill
Mr. Masters’ design depicts a Samoan Fruit Bat mother hanging in a tree with her pup evoking the remarkable care and energy that this species puts into their offspring. The design is intended to promote awareness of the species’ threatened status due to habitat loss and commercial hunting. The National Park of American Samoa is the only park in the United States that is home to the Samoan Fruit Bat. Inscriptions are “NATIONAL PARK,” “AMERICAN SAMOA,” “2020,” and “E PLURIBUS UNUM.”
Weir Farm National Historic Site
- Designer: Justin Kunz
- Sculptor-Engraver: Phebe Hemphill
Mr. Kunz’s design portrays an artist, wearing a painter’s smock, painting outside Julian Alden Weir’s studio at Weir Farm. It is inspired by various images of the studio and Weir’s paintings created on the property, as well as descriptions of Weir and his fellow artist’s creative inspiration from the rural environment. The inscription “A NATIONAL PARK FOR ART” is included. Additional inscriptions are “WEIR FARM,” “CONNECTICUT,” “2020,” and “E PLURIBUS UNUM.”
Salt River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve
- Designer: Richard Masters
- Sculptor-Engraver: Joseph Menna
Mr. Masters’ design depicts a red mangrove tree in an early stage of its life cycle, as it evolves from a very small plant to an adult tree. The design brings awareness to the park’s endangered mangrove forests and the unique and delicate nature of how the species reproduces in salt water. Inscriptions include “SALT RIVER BAY,” “U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS,” “2020,” and “E PLURIBUS UNUM.”
Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park
- Designer: Donna Weaver
- Sculptor-Engraver: Michael Gaudioso
Ms. Weaver’s design depicts a young girl completing the planting of a Norway spruce seedling near an established tree, continuing the life cycle of the forest. The child represents conservationists seeking to maintain a sustainable forest for future enjoyment and education. The inscription “LAND STEWARDSHIP” anchors the design. Additional inscriptions are “MARSH-BILLINGS-ROCKEFELLER,” “VERMONT,” “2020,” and “E PLURIBUS UNUM.”
Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve
- Designer: Emily Damstra
- Sculptor-Engraver: Renata Gordon
Ms. Damstra’s design depicts a skyward view of a Regal Fritillary butterfly against a backdrop of Big Bluestem and Indian grasses, iconic to Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve. Inscriptions are “TALLGRASS PRAIRIE,” “KANSAS,” “2020,” and “E PLURIBUS UNUM.”
Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site
- Designer: Chris Costello
- Sculptor-Engraver: Phebe Hemphill
Mr. Costello’s design depicts a Tuskegee Airman suiting up to join the fight during World War II with the Moton Field control tower in the background. The pilot looks upward with pride and confidence as two P-51 Mustangs pass overhead. The inscription “THEY FOUGHT TWO WARS” is arced across the top as a reference to the dual battles the Tuskegee Airmen fought—fascism abroad and racial discrimination at home. Inscriptions are “TUSKEGEE AIRMEN,” “ALABAMA,” “2021,” and “E PLURIBUS UNUM.”
The obverse (heads) of the America the Beautiful Quarters Program Coins feature the restored 1932 portrait of George Washington by sculptor John Flanagan. Required obverse inscriptions are “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,” “LIBERTY,” “IN GOD WE TRUST,” and “QUARTER DOLLAR.”
Line art of the coin designs is available here.
The America the Beautiful Quarters® Program is authorized by Public Law 110-456—the America’s Beautiful National Parks Quarter Dollar Coin Act of 2008 (Act). The Act directs the Mint to design, mint, and issue quarter-dollar coins emblematic of a national park or other national site in each state, the District of Columbia, and the five U.S. territories. As stipulated by the Act, the Mint is issuing five new quarters per year until 2020 in the order in which each honored site was first established, with the final coin released in 2021.
About the United States Mint
Congress created the United States Mint in 1792, and the Mint became part of the Department of the Treasury in 1873. As the Nation’s sole manufacturer of legal tender coinage, the Mint is responsible for producing circulating coinage for the Nation to conduct its trade and commerce. The Mint also produces numismatic products, including proof, uncirculated, and commemorative coins; Congressional Gold Medals; silver and bronze medals; and silver and gold bullion coins. Its numismatic programs are self-sustaining and operate at no cost to taxpayers.