Enid Coin Club

05/31/2026

https://www.oklahomanumismatic.com/general-6
If you are interested in reading about coins, currency, and Oklahoma Numismatics, check out our back issues of the ONA Magazine, Mint Luster. Back issues can be read on our website.

05/31/2026

National Utah Day: Celebrating the Arches National Park Quarter ⛰️🪙

On May 31, we celebrate The Beehive State on National Utah Day, to mark the 45th state to join the Union! To celebrate the unique heritage of the state, we're highlighting the 2014 Arches National Park Quarter, the 23rd coin in the America the Beautiful Quarters® Program.

Arches National Park is a red-rock wonderland of contrasting colors and textures unlike any other place in the world. Boasting more than 2,000 natural stone arches, hundreds of soaring pinnacles, and giant balanced rocks, the area was first established as a national site on April 12, 1929.

The Obverse features John Flanagan’s familiar 1932 portrait of George Washington, digitally restored by the U.S. Mint to bring out the subtle details and beauty of the original model. The Reverse (Tails) depicts the iconic, 65-foot freestanding Delicate Arch with the La Sal Mountains towering in the background. This widely recognized landmark has graced everything from postage stamps to state license plates, and even welcomed the Olympic torch relay for the 2002 Winter Olympics.

The ANA helps people discover and explore the world of money. Explore our vast array of educational programs and collecting resources at: https://bit.ly/49q4mKo

05/30/2026

1878, the first Morgan Dollars are minted.

1878 | Liberty Head Morgan Object # 103 ANA 1999.43.1

First issued in 1878, the Morgan dollar - designed by George T. Morgan - featured a bold heraldic reverse and an obverse Liberty modeled by teacher Anna Willess Williams. Although iconic today, its large size and weight made it unpopular in everyday circulation at the time.

Production was driven less by public demand than by federal silver purchases that were required under the Bland-Allison Act (and later the Sherman Silver Purchase Act), reflecting the political influence of western mining interests. Millions of Morgan dollars never circulated at all. Instead, they sat in Treasury vaults as bullion reserves. However, when released to collectors in the 1960s, the Morgan dollar fueled one of the strongest collector markets of any U.S. coin. Today, die varieties known as VAMs (after Van Allen and Mallis) make attribution a specialty field within Morgan dollar collecting.

💬 Do you have a favorite Morgan dollar or a memorable story about finding one in your collection?

Follow along each week day as we spotlight one American coin, token, or note for every year of our nation’s independence.🪙 🇺🇸

Explore the collection so far: https://bit.ly/4tn6rxH

05/30/2026

1879 | $10 Refunding Certificate Object # 104 ANA 1987.126.145

Sold through post offices beginning in 1879, Refunding Certificates functioned much like early savings bonds. Individuals could deposit small sums with the federal government and redeem the certificates later for their full value with interest - making them accessible investment tools for ordinary Americans rather than wealthy financiers. Only a few hundred survive today, suggesting most were redeemed as intended.

Their introduction coincided with the implementation of the Specie Resumption Act of 1875, which took effect on January 1, 1879. Why the delay? Because the government needed time to rebuild gold reserves and restore confidence in paper money before, for the first time since the Civil War, paper “greenbacks” could again be exchanged at face value for gold. By 1879, confidence was so strong that very few people actually redeemed paper for gold - a strong sign that the policy worked.

💬 How would restoring gold convertibility in 1879 have changed Americans’ willingness to save in government paper?

Follow along each week day as we spotlight one American coin, token, or note for every year of our nation’s independence.🪙 🇺🇸

Explore the collection so far: https://bit.ly/4trBQiA

05/26/2026

05/26/2026

I hope the regional banks start doing a better job of getting these new coins in circulation.

Sometimes it feels like we might be done with 2026 before we all start seeing these great coins in pocket change.

WASHINGTON, May 25, 2026 — The United States Mint (Mint) will begin shipping the 2026 Semiquincentennial Quarter honoring the Declaration of Independence to the Federal Reserve for distribution to commercial banks and financial institutions on June 1.The Declaration of Independence Quarter obverse...

05/26/2026

Beautiful Indian Head small cent

1876 | Indian Head Small Cent Object # 101 ANA 1977.6.42

Designed by James B. Longacre, the Indian Head cent presents an allegorical Liberty wearing a Native American-style feathered headdress, mimicking Longacre’s earlier “Indian Princess” motif on the $1 and $3 gold coins. The use of indigenous imagery reflects a broader post-Civil War search for symbols that distinguished the U.S. from Europe. The design intentionally pairs a uniquely “American” motif with a classical European-style portrait. Though the Mint Director, James Ross Snowden, reportedly found the combination stylistically inconsistent, it proved enduringly popular with the public.

In 1876, proof cent production rose to 1,150 pieces, likely boosted by interest surrounding the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, which celebrated the nation’s 100th anniversary and showcased new technologies such as Alexander Graham Bell’s telephone prototype.

💬 What other U.S. coins looked to indigenous imagery as a symbol of national identity distinct from Europe?

Follow along each week day as we spotlight one American coin, token, or note for every year of our nation’s independence.🪙 🇺🇸

Explore the collection so far: https://bit.ly/4wpl5Y8

05/24/2026

Denver’s First Nickel: 1912-D Liberty Head Nickel in MS-66+ CAC Comes to Auction In February 1912, the Denver Mint made nickel history. For the first

05/24/2026

This Rare 1885 Morgan Dollar Pattern Hid Its Secret on the Edge An 1885 Pattern Morgan Dollar in aluminum offered collectors a rare look at one of the

05/23/2026

1875 S | Twenty Cents Seated Liberty | Object # 100 ANA 2023.4.94

The twenty-cent coin, sometimes called the “double dime,” was struck for just four years (1875-1878). The largest mintage was produced at the San Francisco Mint in 1875. Strongly supported by western silver interests, especially Nevada senator John P. Jones, the denomination reflected both the abundance of newly mined silver and a regional preference for metallic money over paper currency.

Theoretically, this denomination fit better into the decimal systems at two-tenths of a dollar, yet it proved unpopular. Its similarity in size and design to the quarter caused confusion in circulation. Americans, already accustomed to the “two-bits” tradition inherited from Spanish 8 reales, preferred to stick with the more familiar quarter dollar.

The short-lived denomination also foreshadowed larger national debates over silver coinage that later shaped legislation such as the Bland-Allison Act and helped drive the production of the Morgan dollar.

💬 Why do you think some coin denominations fail - like this 20¢ piece - even when they make logical sense within the monetary system?

Follow along each week day as we spotlight one American coin, token, or note for every year of our nation’s independence.🪙 🇺🇸

Explore the collection so far: https://bit.ly/4wlHMMG