The Voyageurs National Park Silver Uncirculated Coin will be the third 2018 release of the US Mint’s America the Beautiful Five Ounce Silver Uncirculated Coin™ Program. Showcased on the reverse of the silver uncirculated coin will be a design emblematic of Voyageurs National Park of Minnesota. A release date for the coin was not known at the time of this posting.
Coins in this series are struck as the numismatic versions of the American the Beautiful Bullion Coins™. Both series feature strikes composed of five ounces of .999 fine silver with diameters of three inches. Both also take their designs originally from a series of circulating quarter dollars known as the America the Beautiful Quarters® Program.
Since these silver uncirculated coins are struck to resemble the circulating quarters, the obverse of each will contain the same portrait of George Washington that is featured on those quarters. This portrait was originally designed by John Flanagan and was first used on the 1932 circulating quarter dollar. Inscriptions on the obverse will include UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, LIBERTY, IN GOD WE TRUST and QUARTER DOLLAR.
The reverse of the strikes contain the designs emblematic of selected sites of national interest from around the United States and its territories – in this case, Voyageurs National Park. The emblematic design will be surrounded by the inscriptions of VOYAGEURS, MINNESOTA, 2018 and E PLURIBUS UNUM.
Struck as numismatic releases, these coins will initially be sold directly to the public by the US Mint. This differs from the associated bullion coins which are initially sold through the Mint’s network of authorized purchasers.
Voyageurs National Park in Minnesota
Voyageurs National Park of Minnesota was originally established on April 8, 1975. It is named after the French-Canadian fur traders who were amongst the first European settlers to have lived in the area and were generally called Voyageurs.
The park is one of the more unique in the national park system owing mainly to its location. Most of the park area is only accessible by boat during the spring, summer and fall months. Once the lakes have frozen over in winter, some of the sites can be accessed directly from land over the ice.
