2009 Uncirculated Presidential Dollar Coin Sets will be available for sale beginning Thursday, April 2, at 12:00 noon ET, according to a United States Mint press statement.

The 8-coin set is priced at $15.95 and includes four uncirculated coins minted from Denver and four struck in Philadelphia. Each includes the respective "D" or "P" or mintmark. The 2009 uncirculated set contains Presidential $1 coins honoring and bearing the portrait of the following past Presidents:

• William Henry Harrison
• John Tyler
• James K. Polk
• Zachary Taylor

The coin packaging includes biographical "sketches and portraits" for each President. Read the rest of this entry »

Born in New York in December of 1782, Martin Van Buren holds the distinction of being the first president to be born in a newly independent Nation. He is the fourth and final president to be honored on Presidential $1 coins for 2008.

To celebrate Martin Van Buren’s presidency, the United States Mint releases the bulk of the individual products featuring his portrait on Monday, October 27, at 12:00 Noon ET.

The products include the $1 Coin Cover, Individual Proof Coin, Presidential $1 Coin & First Spouse Medal Set, and the previously discussed Presidential $1 Coin Historical Signature Set.

Information for the first three products follow.

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James Monroe, John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren were honored Presidents showcased in a multitude of United States Mint coin products this year.

More are yet to come as the Mint is running the gamut with a stream of new releases to coincide with its 2008 Gift Catalog promotion.

Nearly a dozen coin products go on sale Monday, October 25, at 12:00 noon (ET). Four of them include a United States Mint Presidential $1 coin Historical Signature Set™ for each of the abovementioned Presidents. Any one of which, could potentially be that out of the ordinary, sought after gift for a youngster.

Each of the $19.95 priced sets feature:

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U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker has more reason to celebrate than most for the new 2009 Presidential Dollar designs the United States Mint released on Wednesday. He introduced the amendment calling for the motto "In God We Trust" to be relocated from the edge of the $1 coin to its face. (View up close 2009 Presidential $1 Coin design images.)

"The words of these two phrases symbolize who we are as Americans and should not be relegated to the rim of this new, high-profile coin. They should continue to be proudly and prominently displayed," said Mr. Wicker in 2007 when he was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives."

In late 2007, Congress passed Mr. Wicker’s amendment within the Consolidated Appropriations Act, which included a provision directing the Secretary of the Treasury to move the inscription “In God We Trust” from the edge of the Presidential $1 Coin to the obverse (heads side) or reverse of the coin.

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The United States Mint on Wednesday introduced newly designed 2009 Presidential $1 coins and released detailed artist images of the dollars. The American public will see 2009 circulating coins honoring Presidents William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, James K. Polk and Zachary Taylor. Most interestingly, different design elements have been implemented compared to the initial series of 2007 and 2008 coins.

Notable in the new designs is the placement of "In God We Trust," which in past years has been on the edge of each Presidential dollar. A public outcry occurred when the U.S. Mint inadvertently issued a small subset of 2007 dollars that did not have the inscription because of minting errors. Also, while many thought edge letterings on coins would be a fresh approach, fewer liked "In God We Trust" there after seeing the new dollars. They felt the inscription lacked prominence, and needed to be moved.

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The United States Mint has announced July 24 as the release date for 2008 Uncirculated Presidential Dollar Coin Sets. The set includes four uncirculated presidential dollars minted in Philadelphia with the "P" mint mark and four uncirculated coins from Denver bearing the "D" mint mark.

The 8-coin set is priced at $15.95 and includes this year’s Presidential $1 coins honoring:

• James Monroe,
• John Quincy Adams,
• Andrew Jackson, and
• Martin Van Buren

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Today the U.S. Mint released the James Madison Presidential $1 Coin Historical Signature Set™ for a price of $19.95.

This set is the fourth in the series and features:

• A proof James Madison Presidential Dollar,
• an intaglio print of the President from the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP),
• an official James Madison signature, and
• a leather-like folder showcasing the coin, print and signature

The proof coin is brilliant, with a sharp relief and mirror-like background. The frosted foreground gives a special cameo effect.

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A flood of stories has appeared regarding the forthcoming movement of "In God We Trust" from the edge to the face of Presidential $1 Coins. They all started with President Bush’s signing of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2008.

CoinNews wrote about the legislative scrutiny in changing the motto’s location, expected the signing of the final legislation, reported about it minutes after it was signed and then surmised that the Presidential Dollar coins would not see change until 2009.

In truth, none of the "predictions" took a huge leap of insight;

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The United States Mint offered up a sneak peek of the four Presidential $1 Coins scheduled for release in 2008.

The next four coins will begin the second year of a decade-long series and make their debut in three month increments with the following presidential order and issue dates:

• James Monroe on Feb. 14
• John Quincy Adams on May 15
• Andrew Jackson on Aug. 14
• and Martin Van Buren on Nov. 13

The first four Presidential Dollars issued in 2007 had the image of George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. According to US Mint coin production figures, the Mint turned out 768,530,000 Presidential $1 Coins in 2007. (The total does not include mintage figures for the last Madison Presidential coin, which was released in November.)

With such high mintage numbers, you would expect the coins to be readily available and used in daily transactions. That Mint desire is a long distance from reality with the Presidential $1 Coins nearly invisible outside the coin collector community.

Mint Director Ed Moy was quoted as saying:

“We hope the next four presidential $1 coins will not only jingle in pockets but be spent as well. These coins are convenient. Each presidential $1 coin weighs less than four quarters, and they’re especially useful for vending machines and mass transit."

“We will be working with several local retailers and banks in a concentrated area to facilitate the increased circulation of Presidential $1 Coins. We want to see more of these coins used in daily transactions and given out as change like other denominations.”

2008 would seem to be the year the Mint will focus more on the new dollar coin’s compatibility with vending machines, their ease in use with transit systems and getting banks on board to supply them.

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Second-guessing the United States Mint is exceptionally easy to do. They’re the "big guys" with an array of products and programs that make them a bullseye for attention. They’re also a government entity and it’s not exactly easy or prudent for them to respond to criticism, making arm-chair judgments against them more likely to go unchallenged.

An aggressive marketing campaign by the Mint along with early and embarrassing mint coin errors has provided public notice of the new Presidential $1 Coins. While the Mint should be held accountable for errors or mistakes in decisions, how much criticism do they merit for the lack of progress in getting the new Presidential Dollars used in daily circulation?

Despite the fact that the Mint has already reported nearly 760 million presidential coins minted without the Madison dollars, a significant portion of the public has never received the new coin in daily change. I live in one of the largest cities in the nation, San Antonio, and have yet to experience someone handing me one. Further, asking for and getting the coins at many banks has been a challenge in itself.

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