Erie Canal will be featured on new $1 coin
U.S. Mint highlighting American innovations with coin designs
Courtesy of U.S. Mint: The New York $1 Coin pays homage to the Erie Canal. This design depicts a packet boat being pulled from a city in the East toward the country areas to the West.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Erie Canal will be featured on a new $1 coin from the U.S. Mint highlighting innovation in each of the 50 states.
The multi-year series started in 2018. This year the four states on the coins will be New Hampshire, Virginia, New York and North Carolina.
The canal’s recognition on the coin comes just before the historic waterway’s 200th anniversary in 2025.
“Built in the 19th century, the 363-mile Erie Canal forever changed the trajectory of commercial and agricultural development and set both New York and the nation on a path towards prosperity,” said New York Governor Andrew Cuomo in a press release from the U.S. Mint.
“I want to thank the United States Mint for New York’s American Innovation Coin, which celebrates the Erie Canal’s rich history and recognizes the Empire State’s innovative spirit and legacy of ingenuity,” Cuomo said.
The Mint works with the governor’s offices of each state along with subject matter experts to determine design concepts emblematic of innovation significant and meaningful to their jurisdiction and its role in the nation.
New Hampshire’s coin recognizes Ralph Baer and his creation of the first home video game console. Virginia’s coin features the engineering marvel of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel.
The Statue of Liberty is on the front of the coins.
The North Carolina coin acknowledges the first public institution of higher learning in the United States. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill opened its doors in 1795 and was the only public institution to confer degrees in the 18th century.
“The very nature of this program provides an opportunity for us to become better connected with each other by learning about the many contributions, thoughts, and ideas Americans continuously mesh together to propel our Nation forward,” said U.S. Mint Director David J. Ryder.
For more on the American Innovation series, click here.
