Louisiana Purchase Exposition gold dollar information
United States commemorative coin
Louisiana Purchase Exposition dollar
United States
Value
1 US dollar
Mass
1.672 g
Diameter
15 mm
Edge
Reeded
Composition
90% gold
10% copper
Gold
0.04837 troy oz
Years of minting
1903 (some pieces struck in 1902 with 1903 date)
Mintage
125,000 of each type minted; 35,000 total coins distributed, remainder melted.
Mint marks
None. All pieces struck at Philadelphia Mint without mint mark.
Obverse
Design
Thomas Jefferson
Designer
Charles E. Barber, after a medal by John Reich
Design date
1903
Design
William McKinley
Designer
Charles E. Barber, after a medal by himself
Design date
1903
Reverse
Design
Reverse common to both varieties
Designer
Charles E. Barber
Design date
1903
The Louisiana Purchase Exposition gold dollar is a commemorative coin issue dated 1903. Struck in two varieties, the coins were designed by United States Bureau of the Mint Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber. The pieces were issued to commemorate the Louisiana Purchase Exposition held in 1904 in St. Louis; one variety depicted former president Thomas Jefferson, and the other, the recently assassinated president William McKinley. Although not the first American commemorative coins, they were the first in gold.
Promoters of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, originally scheduled to open in 1903, sought a commemorative coin for fundraising purposes. Congress authorized an issue in 1902, and exposition authorities, including numismatic promoter Farran Zerbe, sought to have the coin issued with two designs, to aid sales. The price for each variety was $3, the same cost whether sold as a coin, or mounted in jewelry or on a spoon.
The coins did not sell well, and most were later melted down. Zerbe, who had promised to support the issue price of the coins, did not do so as prices dropped once the fair (rescheduled for 1904) closed. This drop, however, did not greatly affect Zerbe's career, as he went on to promote other commemorative coins and become president of the American Numismatic Association. The coins also recovered, regaining their issue price by 1915; they are now worth between a few hundred and several thousand dollars, depending on condition.
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that Hemings purchased 25 acres (100,000 m2) for $150 on July 22, 1856, sold the same area for $250 on December 30, 1859, and purchased 66 acres (270...
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Jefferson's direction I paid her stage fare to Philadelphia and gave her fifty dollars. I have never seen her since and don't know what became of her. From the...
French word for the U.S. dollar, used for example in the French text of the LouisianaPurchase. Though the U.S. dollar is called dollar in Modern French, the...
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