Today, Oct. 20, the United States Mint began shipping 2025 Althea Gibson quarters to Federal Reserve Banks and their coin terminals for distribution into circulation. The coin serves as the final design of 2025 and the last of 20 releases in the U.S. Mint’s American Women Quarters™ Program.
Gibson, born in 1927 in South Carolina and raised in Harlem, broke racial barriers in tennis and golf to become a 20th-century sports icon. She won 11 Grand Slam titles. Renowned for her powerful serve-and-volley style and unyielding determination, Gibson later became the first Black woman to compete on the LPGA Tour, paving the way for future generations of athletes who followed in her footsteps. In the early 1960s, she also became the first Black woman to compete on the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour.
"It is fitting that someone so talented in so many areas closes out our program," said Acting Mint Director Kristie McNally. "Althea Gibson’s accomplishments reflect her tenacity and dedication to the pursuit of her dreams."
Designed by Artistic Infusion Program artist Don Everhart and sculpted by Mint Medallic Artist Renata Gordon, the quarter’s reverse (tails) depicts Althea Gibson standing confidently on a tennis court with a racket in one hand and a ball in the other, poised as if preparing to play a match. Inscriptions read "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA," "E PLURIBUS UNUM," "ALTHEA GIBSON," "QUARTER DOLLAR," and "TRAILBLAZING CHAMPION."
The obverse carries the common American Women Quarters portrait of George Washington, sculpted by Laura Gardin Fraser in 1931 to mark Washington’s 200th birthday.
Circulating-quality Gibson quarters will be available to the public starting Tuesday, Oct. 21, at catalog.usmint.gov, in three options: a two-roll set priced at $42, a three-roll set at $63, and a 100-coin bag at $47.25. The three-roll set includes a San Francisco Mint roll, which is rarer because, unlike those from Philadelphia and Denver, its coins are not released into general circulation.
Launched in 2022 as a four-year, 20-coin series, the American Women Quarters™ Program began by honoring Maya Angelou, Dr. Sally Ride, Wilma Mankiller, Nina Otero-Warren, and Anna May Wong. The 2023 quarters continued the tribute with designs featuring Bessie Coleman, Edith Kanakaʻole, Eleanor Roosevelt, Jovita Idar, and Maria Tallchief. In 2024, the program celebrated Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray, Patsy Takemoto Mink, Dr. Mary Edwards Walker, Celia Cruz, and Zitkala-Ša. The 2025 quarters honor Dr. Vera Rubin, Ida B. Wells, Juliette Gordon Low, Stacey Park Milbern, and Althea Gibson, completing the series’ recognition of trailblazing American women.
