New US Mint Quarters Feature National Parks and Sites

A new series of quarters is scheduled to debut next year from the United States Mint. Known as America the Beautiful Quarters, the series will include fifty six different designs. Each one will be a unique depiction of a National Park or National Site from the 50 States, US Territories, and Washington DC.

The series comes on the heels of the highly successful 50 State Quarters Program. Launched in 1999, the series released a total of fifty different quarters at a rate of five per year until 2008. The series helped introduce a new generation of coin collectors and allowed anyone to learn about the states by examining their pocket change. During 2009, six additional coins were issued to recognize the US Territories and the District of Columbia.

While the America the Beautiful Quarters Program will be similar to the other programs, it will have a unique focus and introduce an accompanying bullion program. The new program will feature 56 different coins, with unique depictions on the "tails side" of the coin. The "heads side" will feature a restored portrait of George Washington. Quarters will also be released at a rate of five per year, but with a single design in the final year. The new coins will be released into circulation, making potential collectors out of anyone who receives them.

What makes the new series distinctive will be the shift in focus towards National Parks and Sites. The legislation which created the program specified that this may include any area under the management or conservancy of the National Park Service (NPS), United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFW), or the United States Forest Service (USFS). This broad definition opens eligibility to hundreds of federally designated sites around the country and throughout the territories.

To accompany the quarter series, a new program of silver bullion coins will also be introduced. The coins will be over sized replicas of each quarter, weighing five ounces and struck in .999 fine silver. These coins will be issued on the same annual schedule as the quarters and are expected to be available throughout the year when the corresponding quarter is issued.

The entire register of sites to be depicted on the America the Beautiful Quarters Program were recently released by the United States Mint. The sites will be featured in the order that the sites were federally designated. Collectors can look for the first release of the series featuring Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas, expected to be released in April 2010.

Find detailed information about the upcoming America the Beautiful Quarters Program. View the America the Beautiful Quarters Release Dates.