Baseball and American athletics changed forever in 1947. Jackie Robinson’s debut at first base for the New York Yankees ushered in the era of integrated sports – an era that continues to this day. However, black women also have their own Jackie Robinson. That lady is Althea Gibson (1927 – 2003), who was the first…
Stacey Milbern (1987 – 2020) was a disability advocate who fought tirelessly on behalf of those with physical and intellectual disabilities. She was one of the co-founders of the Disability Justice movement and made significant strides within the sphere of disabled rights during her lifetime. Milbern is a unique honoree in the scope of the…
Some people are smart – extremely smart. So smart, in fact, that you have to research what they did before you can even understand what they did. Dr. Vera Rubin (1928 – 2016) was one of those people. She was an astronomer who pioneered much of the initial research regarding galactic rotation curves. In…
For some people, it is difficult to summarize their life’s work. They’ve had such a diverse life that there are several elements that combine to a full picture. Juliette Low (1860 – 1927) is not one of those people. She made one lasting contribution to society. However, it was a doozy. Juliette Low founded the…
Zitkala-Ša (1876 – 1938) was an Native American activist, educator, and writer whose advocacy made significant strides for the rights of Native Americans in the US. Her work brought attention to the second-class status of her people. In addition, she also wrote plainly and at length about the clash between her Native American cultural norms…
Celia Cruz (1925 – 2003) was a Cuban-American singer who rose from her humble beginnings in Havana to become the “Queen of Salsa.” She was an icon in both of her countries, and left an indelible mark on the world of Latin music. However, not all notable musicians get their own quarter. For instance, Selena…
Mary Walker (1832 – 1919) may not be a notable American woman on the tip of your tongue. Time tends to erase recognition, and Dr. Walker’s lifetime began almost 200 years ago. However, Mary Walker is one of 20 women recognized on specially-designed quarters issued through the US Mint’s American Women Quarters Program. So, she…
Patsy Mink (1927 – 2002) made her mark on the world through her advocacy and support of her native Hawaii. She was one of the first national representatives of the newly-formed state, and ultimately served as a US Congressperson for the state for 24 years. However, Hawaiian statehood didn’t occur until Mink was 32 years…
Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray (1910 – 1985) had an extremely varied life. In fact, she earned five advanced degrees over the course of her lifetime, and her life had several distinct but distinguished chapters. As it happens, Murray may have been before her time. Her actions in support of gender equality, gender identity, and sexuality…
Most of the women honored by the American Women Quarters Program were fighters. They passionately championed their causes, sometimes at great personal risk. Maria Tallchief (1925 – 2013) didn’t do that. She just danced. Well, that’s not the whole story. Most of us dance, and we don’t end up on US currency. As it happens,…
Dr. Sally Ride (1951 – 2012) is one of the better-known individuals to be honored by the US Mint’s American Women Quarters Program. She was the first American woman and the third woman overall to go into space, and her pitch-perfect surname has helped to keep her in the public lexicon. She was…
Nina Otero-Warren (1881 – 1965) was an American suffragist, educator, and politician who was responsible for several key firsts for Latinas during her lifetime. For her efforts, she was honored on the fourth coin released as part of the US Mint’s American Women Quarters Program. Otero-Warren, like every other honoree on the quarters, achieved great…
Bruce Lee is a household name. So is Jackie Chan. George Takei is his own meme, at this point. However, none of these titans can lay claim to the title of being the first Chinese-American movie star. That honor is reserved for Anna May Wong (1905 – 1961). Wong’s stardom, and her incredible struggles to…
Edith Kanaka’ole (1913 – 1979) undoubtedly has one of the longest names of all the American women honored by the US Mint. Surprisingly, her birth name was quite a bit longer than that: Edith Kekuhikuhipu’uoneonāali’iōkohala Kenao. So, “Kanaka’ole” is an improvement, if only for writers who cover her memorable life. Name aside, Ms. Kanaka’ole…
Eleanor Roosevelt (1884 – 1962) may be the biggest named honoree of the American Women Quarters Program. Her advocacy redefined the role of the First Lady in the cultural and political conversation in this country. There is no Jackie Kennedy, Barbara Bush, Hillary Clinton, or Michelle Obama without Eleanor Roosevelt. Ms. Roosevelt may be the…
Like many American Women Quarters Program honorees, Jovita Idar (1885 – 1946) made notable and significant contributions for the causes that she championed. In her case, those causes centered around the struggles encountered by Mexican immigrants and Mexican-Americans. However, Jovita Idar is also a central figure in the defense of the First Amendment to the…
Perhaps no coin ever issued by the US Mint has a more Star Wars-esque name than the Wilma Mankiller quarter. The Mint released this coin in 2022 as the third in its American Women Quarters Program. Despite its fanciful name, the Wilma Mankiller quarter honors a great activist and social worker, the eponymous Wilma Mankiller….
As part of its American Women Quarters series, the US Mint chose to honor Bessie Coleman, an early and important pioneer in the field of aviation. Her life, although brief, left an indelible impact on both aviation and American history. Unfortunately, her story may not be as well-known as it deserves to be. The somewhat-similar…
Some of the women chosen as honorees for the American Women Quarters Program have stories and biographies that are not especially well-known to the American public. Maya Angelou is not one of them. Instead, Ms. Angelou is nothing short of one of the finest and most celebrated poets in American history. She was a…
From the earliest days of the US Mint, quarters have been trucking off the production lines. These 25-cent coins have been a useful part of American coinage for well over 200 years, and remain in circulation today. One of the lesser-known quarter types is the Barber, which was minted during the last 8 years of…
Quarters have played a major role in the coinage of the United States since the earliest days of the US Mint. There have been countless different types of these coins minted over the years, but the Seated Liberty is one of the most popular types of quarters. Minted from the middle stages of the 19th…
The Washington Quarter was first minted in the early 1930s, and has remained in circulation ever since. Of course, the biggest different between coins minted between 1932 and 1964 and coins minted nowadays is the fact that the former contains a good bit of silver, increasing its inherent value. For collectors, the silver content is…
When it was first introduced, American citizens immediately fell in love with the Standing Liberty Quarter. Playing off the name of the earlier Seated Liberty, the Standing Liberties boasted a beautiful design that was as intricate as any coin of its day. Even though these coins were minted for less than 15 years, they have…
Early Bust quarters have a higher value than most others because they were produced such a long time ago and, as such, are not so easy to locate anymore. Produced during the final years of the 1700s up through most of the 1830s, these coins are an especially important part of American coinage history and…