Now that they’ve gone through all the states, the US Mint is gearing up to release 56 new commemorative quarters called the “America the Beautiful” series starting in 2010 and running through 2021. The coins will go in date order of when the various parks, memorials and destinations were established, which means the first one up is Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas (which was actually designated before Yellowstone).
I’m not particularly heartbroken that I stopped collecting them; mostly because ‘collecting’ them meant ‘going through my spare change.’ I don’t have spare change anymore, thanks to debit cards. Weird how that works out, huh? – even ten years ago I was more often using cash than not. Now, it’s a slightly memorable occasion when I have to.
Moe Lane