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56 U.S. State, D.C. & Territory Quarters - YouTube
Channel: Wanderlust Wisdom: Travel, History, & Science
[9]
Anyone who has handled coins of the United
States in recent years has most likely noticed
[13]
the wide variety of designs on the 25 cent
pieces or quarters.
[17]
The quarter dollar coin has been in use with
various designs since 1796.
[21]
It was between 1932 and 1998, that the design
of the quarter included a portrait of George
[28]
Washington on the obverse side and a bald
eagle, the national bird, on the reverse side.
[33]
The eagle perched on a bundle of arrows with
olive branches below.
[38]
In 1997, Congress issued the United States
Commemorative Coin Program Act, which was
[43]
signed into law by then President Bill Clinton
on December 1, 1997, which established the
[50]
50 state quarter program.
[52]
Beginning in 1999, the long familiar eagle
design was replaced with a design emblematic
[57]
of each of the 50 states.
[59]
Five coins were issued each year between 1999
and 2008, or one every 10 weeks.
[65]
The coins were issued in the order that the
states ratified the Constitution.
[70]
George Washington’s portrait on the observe
side was also slightly redesigned.
[74]
The United States of America scrolls above
his head, while the words Quarter Dollar are
[78]
displayed beneath.
[80]
The word Liberty appears to the left of Washington
and the national motto of “In God We Trust,”
[85]
adopted in 1956, appears to the right.
[89]
The Mint mark for each coin appears below
this, an S for the San Francisco Mint, a D
[93]
for the Denver Mint, and a P for the Philadelphia
Mint.
[97]
The great majority of coins in circulation
are from the Denver and Philadelphia mints,
[101]
while coins from the San Francisco Mint are
mostly proof coins produced for collectors.
[106]
The reverse side’s central design is different
for each quarter, but always displays the
[110]
states name across the top with the year that
the state ratified the Constitution directly
[115]
below that.
[116]
The Latin phrase of “E Pluribus Unum,”
in use since 1776, appears at the bottom,
[122]
which translates to “Out of Many One.”
[125]
Above this is the year that the coin was minted.
[128]
The first coin of the series, Delaware’s
quarter, features Caesar Rodney on horseback
[133]
with the captions “Caesar Rodney” and
“The First State,” one of the state’s
[137]
nicknames.
[138]
Caesar Rodney was an American lawyer, politician,
and military officer who served with the Delaware
[143]
militia during the French and Indian War and
the American Revolution.
[146]
He was a representative of Delaware for the
Continental Congress during the Revolution.
[151]
To break a deadlock on the vote to declare
independence, Rodney rode through a thunderstorm
[156]
on the night of July 1, 1776.
[158]
He arrived in Philadelphia on July 2 when
voting took place on declaring independence.
[162]
His arrival allowed the vote to pass and Rodney
went on to sign the Declaration of Independence.
[168]
Later in the war, he served as Delaware’s
president between 1778 and 1781.
[173]
Pennsylvania’s quarter features the Commonwealth
statue with an outline of the state behind
[177]
her.
[178]
The state’s motto of “Virtue, Liberty,
Independence,” adopted in 1778, appears
[183]
to the right, while a keystone appears to
the left.
[186]
The Commonwealth statue is a gilded statue
created in 1905 that stands atop the dome
[190]
of the Pennsylvania State Capitol building
in Harrisburg.
[193]
The keystone is a reference to the state’s
nickname, the “Keystone State.”
[197]
A keystone is a wedge shaped stone piece at
the apex of a masonry vault or arch that allows
[203]
the arch to bear weight, hence the name keystone.
[206]
The name keystone was associated with Pennsylvania,
as the state was at the center of the original
[211]
13 colonies that declared independence, and
home to the nation’s first capital of Philadelphia.
[216]
New Jersey’s quarter features an image based
off of the famous 1851 painting titled Washington
[222]
Crossing the Delaware.
[223]
The painting is an idealized representation
of General George Washington crossing the
[227]
Delaware River on the night of December 25,
1776 during the American Revolution.
[232]
The crossing was the first action in a decisive
surprise attack against Hessian forces at
[237]
Trenton that became one of the turning points
of the Revolutionary War.
[241]
George Washington stands near the front of
the boat while James Monroe holds the flag
[245]
behind him.
[246]
Monroe was only a young solider at the time,
but would later serve as president.
[250]
The caption, Crossroads of the Revolution,
refers to the key crossings that American
[254]
and British forces made across the Delaware
River between New Jersey and Pennsylvania
[258]
during the course of the war.
[261]
Georgia’s quarter features a peach fruit
in the center of an outline of the state.
[264]
The peach is the state fruit and has long
been associated with Georgia as it grows in
[268]
abundance there.
[269]
Sprigs of the live oak, the state tree, flank
the outline of Georgia, while the state’s
[274]
motto of “Wisdom, Justice, Moderation”
is written across a banner.
[277]
An apparent mistake in the outline of the
state has left out Dade County, which is located
[282]
in the extreme northwestern portion of the
state.
[285]
Connecticut’s quarter features the Charter
Oak, an unusually large white oak tree that
[290]
grew in Hartford from around the 12th or 13th
centuries until it fell in a storm in 1856.
[296]
Tradition tells that Connecticut’s Royal
Charter of 1662 was hidden within the hollow
[301]
of the tree to prevent its confiscation in
1687 by the English Governor-General Sir Edmund
[306]
Andros.
[307]
This was when King James II consolidated several
colonies into the short lived Dominion of
[312]
New England in an attempt to take closer control
of them.
[315]
After the tree fell in 1856, wood from it
was used to create the desk of the Governor
[319]
of Connecticut, as well as the chairs for
the Speaker of the House of Representatives
[323]
and the President of the Senate.
[325]
These pieces of furniture are still at the
state capitol building in Hartford.
[329]
Massachusetts’ quarter features an outline
of the state with The Concord Minuteman of
[335]
1775 statue that was erected in 1875.
[338]
The statue commemorates the militiamen who
responded to stand against British forces
[342]
in the first battles of the American Revolution
at Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775.
[347]
The caption of “The Bay State” appears
to the right.
[351]
Maryland’s quarter features the dome of
the Maryland State House in Annapolis.
[355]
The building dates to 1772 and is the oldest
state capitol building in continuous legislative
[361]
use.
[362]
The dome is the largest wooden dome in the
United States constructed without nails.
[366]
Clusters of the white oak, the state tree,
flank the dome on the quarter.
[370]
The caption of “The Old Line State” is
one of Maryland’s nicknames.
[373]
It may have originated during the Revolutionary
War, referring to the Maryland line of troops.
[379]
South Carolina’s quarter features the state
bird of the Carolina wren, the state flower
[383]
of the yellow jessamine, the state tree of
the cabbage palmetto, and the state’s outline.
[387]
The state’s nickname of “The Palmetto
State” appears as a caption.
[391]
The palmetto is a common tree along the south
Atlantic coast.
[394]
The palmetto’s spongey bark helped to absorb
the impact of British cannonballs when American
[399]
forces under William Moultrie defended a fort
constructed of palmetto logs on Sullivan’s
[404]
Island in 1776.
[405]
New Hampshire’s quarter features The Old
Man of the Mountain, a great face of stone
[409]
that used to protrude from granite cliffs
of the White Mountains that was first recorded
[414]
in 1805.
[415]
The rock formation collapsed in May 2003,
less than three years after the quarter’s
[420]
release.
[421]
The quarter also features nine stars to the
left a reference to New Hampshire being the
[424]
ninth state to ratify the Constitution.
[427]
The state’s motto of “Live, Free, or Die”
appears as a caption, the phrase was first
[432]
used by a Revolutionary War veteran in 1809
and recalls the assertive independence of
[437]
the United States.
[439]
Virginia’s quarter features three English
ships of sail from the early seventeenth century,
[444]
the Susan Constant, the Godspeed, and the
Discovery.
[447]
It was these ships that transported the settlers
of Jamestown to Virginia in 1607 when the
[453]
first permanent English colony was established
in what is now the United States.
[457]
The captions of Jamestown, 1607-2007 and quadricentennial
speaks to this history and the 400th anniversary
[464]
of Jamestown’s founding.
[465]
New York’s quarter features one of America’s
most iconic symbols, the Statue of Liberty,
[470]
in front of a map of the state.
[472]
The 11 stars are a reference to New York being
the 11th state to ratify the Constitution.
[478]
The caption “Gateway to Freedom” recalls
New York City’s history as an arrival point
[481]
for millions of immigrants, especially at
Ellis Island in the late 19th and early 20th
[486]
centuries.
[487]
The Statue of Liberty was dedicated in 1886
and was a gift from the people of France.
[491]
The statue was often one of the first sights
that European immigrants saw upon their arrival
[496]
by ship across the Atlantic.
[497]
The map of New York featured on the quarter
displays the Hudson River, a key waterway
[501]
throughout the state’s history, and the
Erie Canal, built in the early 19th century.
[506]
North Carolina’s quarter features the Wright
brothers’ Wright Flyer in Kittyhawk mid-flight
[510]
on December 17, 1903.
[513]
This was the first successful heavier-than-air
powered aircraft.
[516]
The text reads “first flight.”
[518]
Rhode Island’s quarter features the 1903
America’s Cup racing yacht Reliance on Narragansett
[523]
Bay.
[524]
The Pell Bridge or Newport Bridge, opened
in 1969, appears in the background.
[529]
The nickname of The Ocean State appears above.
[531]
Vermont’s quarter features a man collecting
sap from maple trees, while Camel’s Hump
[535]
Mountain, part of the Green Mountain range,
with its distinctive profile appears in the
[540]
background.
[541]
The caption reads “Freedom and Unity,”
the state’s motto.
[544]
Kentucky’s quarter features a thoroughbred
racehorse, a reference to the state’s connection
[548]
to horse racing.
[549]
The Federal Hill Mansion appears in the background,
a former planation built in 1795.
[553]
The mansion served as inspiration for the
song “My Old Kentucky Home” in 1852.
[559]
Tennessee’s quarter features a collection
of musical instruments and a banner that reads
[562]
musical heritage.
[563]
Ohio’s quarter features an outline of the
state and the Wright Flyer, the same aircraft
[567]
that appears on North Carolina’s quarter.
[569]
The Wright brothers were born in Dayton, Ohio.
[571]
An astronaut also appears, a reference to
the fact that Neil Armstrong, the first man
[575]
on the moon, was a native of Ohio.
[577]
The caption reads Birthplace of Aviation Pioneers.
[581]
Louisiana’s quarter features a map of the
United States with the 1803 Louisiana Purchase
[585]
outlined.
[586]
A trumpet with musical notes is a reference
to Louisiana’s musical heritage, especially
[590]
jazz music.
[592]
The state bird of a brown pelican also sits
beside the map.
[595]
Indiana’s quarter features an IndyCar in
front of a map of the state, a reference to
[599]
IndyCar auto racing and the Indianapolis 500.
[602]
19 stars signify the fact that Indiana was
the 19th state to ratify the Constitution.
[608]
The state’s motto of “Crossroads of America”
also appears to the right.
[612]
Mississippi’s quarter features two magnolia
blossoms, the state’s flower, with the associated
[617]
nickname, “The Magnolia State.”
[619]
Illinois’ quarter features a young Abraham
Lincoln, a native of Illinois, in front of
[623]
an outline of the state.
[624]
The state’s nickname of Land of Lincoln
appears to the left and the caption of 21st
[629]
state / century appears to the right.
[632]
A farm scene and part of the skyline of Chicago
can also be seen.
[636]
Alabama’s quarter features a seated Helen
Keller, the first deaf and blind person to
[640]
earn a bachelor of arts degree and a native
of Alabama.
[643]
Her name appears in standard text and in braille.
[646]
A longleaf pine branch, the state tree, and
magnolia blossoms are seen off to the sides.
[651]
A banner with the text “Spirit of Courage”
appears below.
[654]
Maine’s quarter features the early 19th
century Pemaquid Point Lighthouse and the
[658]
schooner Victory Chimes, built in the year
1900.
[662]
Missouri’s quarter features the Gateway
Arch of St. Louis, which was built in 1935.
[666]
The arch is the world’s tallest at 630 feet
and a monument to westward expansion.
[671]
The return of Lewis and Clark in a canoe being
rowed by the slave named York is shown as
[675]
they come down the Missouri River.
[677]
The Lewis and Clark Expedition is also recalled
in the caption of Corps of Discovery and the
[681]
dates of 1804 and 2004, representing the 200th
anniversary of the expedition.
[687]
Arkansas’ quarter features a diamond, the
state gem, rice stalks, and a mallard flying
[691]
above a lake.
[693]
Arkansas was the only diamond bearing state
in the country before more recent discoveries
[696]
in Colorado and Montana.
[698]
Michigan’s quarter features an outline of
the state along with an outline of all five
[702]
of the Great Lakes.
[703]
Florida’s quarter features a Spanish galleon,
representing the state’s early history as
[708]
a Spanish colony, cabbage palmettos, the state
tree, and a space shuttle, a reference to
[713]
the many NASA missions launched from Cape
Canaveral.
[716]
The caption reads “Gateway to Discovery.”
[719]
Texas’ quarter features an outline of the
state with a single star.
[722]
Ropes form a border, recalling cowboys and
ranching.
[725]
The Lone Star state was once a country of
its own, the Texas Republic, between 1836
[730]
and 1846.
[732]
Iowa’s quarter features a schoolhouse with
a teacher and students planting a tree and
[736]
the caption of “Foundation in Education.”
[738]
The name of “Grant Wood,” the famous American
painter, appears below.
[742]
Wisconsin’s quarter features the head of
a cattle, a round of cheese, and an ear of
[747]
maize, symbols of the state’s dairy and
agricultural industries.
[750]
A banner with the state motto of forward is
shown below.
[753]
California’s quarter features John Muir,
the American naturalist, who was an early
[757]
advocate of preserving wildness areas in the
United States.
[760]
Muir is shown exploring the Yosemite Valley
with Yosemite National Park’s Half Dome
[766]
in the background and a California condor
soaring above.
[769]
Minnesota’s quarter features the state bird
of the common loon swimming in a lake as people
[773]
are seen fishing in the background.
[776]
Minnesota is known for its many lakes and
the state’s nickname of “Land of 10,000
[779]
Lakes” appears on a map of the state to
the left.
[782]
Oregon’s quarter features a scene at Crater
Lake National Park, the fifth oldest national
[787]
park in the United States.
[788]
The park includes the caldera of Crater Lake,
a remnant of a destroyed volcano, and the
[793]
surrounding forests.
[794]
Kansas’ quarter features an American bison,
the state mammal that historically populated
[799]
the Great Plains in huge numbers before being
brought to near extinction in the late 19th
[804]
century.
[805]
Sunflowers, the state flower, appear to the
left of the bison.
[808]
West Virginia’s quarter features the New
River Gorge Bridge opened in 1977.
[812]
The 1,700 feet long arch spans the gorge in
the Appalachian Mountains.
[818]
Nevada’s quarter features wild mustang horses
with mountains and a rising sun in the background.
[822]
Sagebrush, the state flower, appears to the
sides.
[825]
The banner holds the state’s nickname of
the Silver State.
[829]
Nebraska’s quarter features Chimney Rock,
a famous landmark that was used by settlers
[832]
traveling west, represented by the covered
wagon.
[836]
Colorado’s quarter features Longs Peak in
the Rocky Mountains and the state’s slogan
[840]
of Colorful Colorado.
[841]
North Dakota’s quarter features American
bison in the badlands of the state.
[846]
South Dakota’s quarter features Mount Rushmore
a huge sculpture carved into granite in the
[850]
Black Hills in 1925.
[851]
It serves as a national memorial to George
Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt,
[856]
and Abraham Lincoln, four of the country’s
most influential presidents.
[860]
The state bird, a ring-necked pheasant flies
above and wheat appears to the sides.
[864]
While South Dakota has the second highest
proportion of Native Americans of any state,
[868]
the quarter features three items related to
European settlement: Mount Rushmore, which
[873]
was carved into the sacred Black Hills of
the Lakota, a pheasant, which is an exotic
[877]
species originally from Asia and introduced
to North America in 1881, and wheat, which
[882]
has replaced tens of thousands of square miles
of native grasslands.
[886]
Montana’s quarter features an American bison
skull with mountains and the Missouri River
[890]
in the background.
[891]
The state’s slogan of Big Sky Country is
written to the right.
[895]
Washington’s quarter features a leaping
salmon in front of Mount Rainier, the tallest
[899]
mountain in the state.
[900]
The state nickname of the Evergreen State
is also featured, a reference to the lush
[904]
temperate rainforests of the Pacific coast.
[907]
Idaho’s quarter features a peregrine falcon,
adopted as the state raptor in 2004.
[912]
A map of the state is shown with a star indicating
the location of the state capital of Boise.
[917]
The state motto of Esto Perpetua, which is
Latin for Let it be eternal, is written above
[922]
the map.
[923]
Wyoming’s quarter features a bucking horse
and rider and the state’s nickname of the
[927]
Equality State, a reference to the fact that
Wyoming was the first territory and state
[931]
to allow women the right to vote.
[933]
Utah’s quarter features the Golden Spike,
the final spike driven to join the rails of
[937]
the First Transcontinental Railroad across
the United States, joining the Atlantic and
[941]
Pacific coasts in 1869.
[943]
The railway with locomotives on each side
is shown below.
[947]
Oklahoma’s quarter features a scissor-tailed
flycather, the state bird, and Indian blankets,
[952]
the state wildflower.
[953]
New Mexico’s quarter features a map of the
state with the Native American Zia sun symbol
[957]
that also features on the state’s flag.
[960]
The caption includes the state’s nickname
of the Land of Enchantment.
[963]
Arizona’s quarter features the Grand Canyon,
the largest canyon in the world.
[967]
A Saguaro cactus, an iconic species endemic
to the Sonoran Desert is also featured.
[972]
A banner with the state’s nickname of the
Grand Canyon State separates the two scenes
[976]
as the Grand Canyon is located in the northern
portion of the state, while Saguaros only
[980]
grow in the southern desert portion of the
state.
[983]
Alaska’s quarter features a grizzly bear
with a salmon in its mouth.
[987]
The salmon is extremely important to Alaska’s
ecology, economy, and native peoples.
[992]
The North Star, a symbol of Alaska, is also
included.
[995]
The caption of the Great Land appears to the
right, a reference to the fact that Alaska
[1000]
is by far the country’s largest state.
[1003]
This map shows just how big Alaska is compared
to the rest of the continental United States.
[1007]
Hawaii’s quarter features a map of the state
with the state’s motto in Hawaiian below
[1012]
that translates to “The life of the land
is perpetuated in righteousness.”
[1016]
The famous Honolulu statue of King Kamehameha
I, the first king of hawaii, appears to the
[1022]
right with an outstretched arm.
[1024]
Hawaii’s quarter is the first U.S. coin
produced for circulation that has featured
[1029]
royalty or a monarch of any kind.
[1032]
After the conclusion of the 50 state quarters
in 2008, six additional new quarters were
[1037]
issued the following year in 2009 for the
federal District of Columbia and the five
[1041]
territories of Puerto Rico, Guam, American
Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Northern
[1046]
Mariana Islands
[1047]
Washington, D.C.’s quarter features Duke
Ellington seated at a grand piano.
[1052]
Ellington was a composer, pianist, and bandleader
of jazz orchestras.
[1056]
The caption reads “Justice for All.”
[1058]
Puerto Rico’s quarter features a sentry
box of the historic Castillo San Felipe del
[1063]
Morro, a Spanish fortress built in San Juan
in 1539.
[1067]
A hibiscus flower appears to the right and
the caption reads “Isla del Encanto,”
[1072]
Spanish for Island of Enchantment.
[1074]
Guam’s quarter features a map of the island,
a native seagoing vessel, and a latte stone,
[1080]
an ancient pillar used for the base of homes.
[1082]
The caption translates to Guam - Land of the
Chamorro.
[1086]
American Samoa’s quarter features an ava
bowl, a whisk and staff, all symbols of the
[1090]
native peoples.
[1091]
The ava bowl is used to make special ceremonial
drink for island chiefs and guests during
[1095]
important events and the ava ceremony is one
of the most significant traditional events
[1100]
in Samoan culture.
[1101]
The whisk and staff symbolize the rank of
the Samoan orator at these gatherings.
[1105]
A coconut tree appears on the shore in the
background.
[1108]
The motto of American Samoa is featured as
a caption and translates to Samoa, God is
[1114]
First.
[1115]
The U.S. Virgin Islands’ quarter features
an outline of the three major islands, a yellow
[1118]
banana quit, the territory’s official bird,
a yellow elder, the official flower, and a
[1123]
tyre palm tree.
[1125]
The official motto of the territory of United
in Pride and Hope also appears to the right.
[1130]
The Northern Mariana Islands’ quarter features
images of the islands’ many natural resources.
[1134]
An ancient limestone latte stone stands on
the shore while a seafaring canoe of the indigenous
[1139]
Carolinians appears at sea.
[1141]
Two white fairy tern birds fly overhead.
[1143]
A Carolinian mwar or head lei makes up the
bottom border.
[1148]
After the conclusion of the state and territorial
quarters in 2009, the America the Beautiful
[1153]
Quarters began to be minted in 2010.
[1155]
This program features five new quarters each
year until the year 2021.
[1160]
Each quarter will depict a national park or
national site, one from each state, the federal
[1164]
district, and each territory.
[1165]
If you enjoyed this video, be sure to hit
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[1169]
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[1170]
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[1173]
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[1178]
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[1180]
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American states that were once independent
[1183]
countries right here.
[1187]
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