Coin Blog

The US Mint released the thirteenth Presidential Dollar in the series featuring Millard Fillmore on February 18, 2010. The release was accompanied by two separate launch ceremonies held in Moravia, NY (the official US Mint launch ceremony) and Buffalo, NY (a special event at city hall attended by a US Mint rep). See this amusing article in the Wall Street Journal.

Following the format of the series, the Millard Fillmore Presidential Dollar features his portrait on the obverse, with inscriptions indicating his name, order of the Presidency, and years of the term. The reverse of the coin features a rendition of the Statue of Liberty that has been used in common for each coin of the series.

On the same day as the release, the US Mint began sales of 25-coin rolls from either the Philadelphia or Denver Mint. These rolls are priced at $35.95 each.

Last week on February 11, 2010, the US Mint began selling the 2010 Presidential Dollar Proof Set. This set represents the first availability of this year's Presidential Dollar coins including the Abraham Lincoln Dollar.

The sets contain four proof coins featuring Millard Fillmore, Franklin Pierce, James Buchanan, and Abraham Lincoln. The reverse design of each coin features the Statue of Liberty. Each coin still features edge lettering with "E Pluribus Unum" and the date and mint mark. The motto "In God We Trust", which appeared on the edge from 2007 to 2008, is now on the obverse.

The sets are priced at $15.95 each. It's usually a much better deal to wait for the full 2010 Proof Set, which contains all of the proof issues for the year, but I decided to order the separate Presidential Dollar Set. I want to get a look at these early this year!

The final circulation strike mintages for the Zachary Taylor Presidential Dollar were recently released by the US Mint. They represent new mintage lows for each respective mint and on an overall basis.

The Zachary Taylor Dollar was released into circulation on November 19, 2009 as the fourth and final release of the series for the year and the twelfth release since the series began. Until this point, mintages have shown a general decline for each subsequent release, with two small interruptions.

The latest mintage figures break new ground to the downside. On an overall basis, the mintage came in at 78,260,000. This was divided between 41,580,000 coins produced at the Philadelphia Mint and 36,680,000 coins produced at the Denver Mint.

This comes in almost 10 million below the mintage of the prior release. The number is also about one fourth of the mintage achieved for the first release of the series for the George Washington Dollar. Will the mintages continue to decline as the series progresses?

The Presidential Dollar series will enter its fourth year in 2010. The year will also include one of the most well known Presidents, hopefully giving the series a boost.

The US Mint recently released the line art images for the 2010 Presidential Dollars honoring Millard Fillmore, Franklin Pierce, James Buchanan, and Abraham Lincoln. These images will be used for the obverse of each coin and the reverse will continue to feature the Statue of Liberty as designed by Don Everhart.

The Presidential Dollars will be struck for circulation at the Philadelphia and Denver Mints. The dollar coins will co-circulate with the Native American Dollar series. Proof versions of each dollar coin will also be produced for inclusion in a variety of US Mint products offered to collectors.

Images for each of next year's Presidential Dollars appear below.

Millard Fillmore Presidential Dollar
13th President
1850-1853

Franklin Pierce Presidential Dollar
14th President
1853-1857

James Buchanan Presidential Dollar
15th President
1857-1861

Abraham Lincoln Presidential Dollar
16th President
1861-1865

Today the James K. Polk Dollar was officially launched and released into circulation. This is the 11th Presidential Dollar of the series and the third release of the year. Although mintages are not yet available for the coin, the trend this year has been for a lower mintage for each subsequent coin.

The obverse of the coin features a portrait designed by Susan Gamble and sculpted by Charles Vickers. The inscriptions read "James K. Polk" "In God We Trust" "11th President" and "1845-1849". The coin's date, mint mark, and "E Pluribus Unum" can be found on the edge of the coin.

The official launch ceremony was hosted by the United States Mint in Columbia, Tennessee, at the ancestral home of President Polk. Children who attended the ceremony received a free dollar coin. Other attendees could exchange their bills for rolls of the new coin.

At the same time, the US Mint began selling individual collector rolls of the Polk Dollar on their website. These rolls are specially packaged and sell for $35.95 per roll. Separate rolls can be purchased from either the Philadelphia or Denver Mints.