The first thirteen states which formed the United States were minted in the order they ratified the United States Constitution. The remaining thirty-seven states were minted in the order they were admitted to the Union. Coins were minted approximately ten weeks before the next state quarter's minting began.
The quarters feature each state's individual design on the reverse, or tails side of the coin. In order to accommodate the designs, the quarter had to be modified. The words "United States of America" and "Quarter Dollar" were moved to the obverse side. The year minted, formerly on the obverse, was moved to the reverse.
Each state played a role in deciding the design for their coin. Many state governors called upon the citizens of their state to submit design ideas. Once the time for submission of design ideas was complete, the suggestions were sent to a governor-mandated commemorative coin committee for review. The committee narrowed down the choice to a handful and the governor usually made the final choice, subject to approval by the Secretary of Treasury.
The first state quarter, Delaware, was released January 4, 1999. Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia and Connecticut followed later that year. The year 2000 brought quarters for Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, New Hampshire and Virginia. In 2001, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Vermont and Kentucky were minted. Tennessee, Ohio, Louisiana, Indiana and Mississippi quarters were released in 2002.
In 2003, the mint released quarters for the states of Illinois, Alabama, Maine, Missouri and Arkansas. 2004 releases included Michigan, Florida, Texas, Iowa and Wisconsin. California, Minnesota, Oregon, Kansas and West Virginia followed in 2005. January 2006 brought Nevada. Nebraska, Colorado, North Dakota and South Dakota were also released that year.
2007 brought Montana, Washington, Idaho, Wyoming and Utah. 2008 was the final year for the 50 State Quarters Program. Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona, Alaska and Hawaii were the final quarters of the program.
Due to the overwhelming success of the 50 State Quarters, Congress signed two other commemorative coin programs into law in 2007 and 2008 respectively. While commonly believed to be part of the 50 State Quarters Program, the quarters for the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, US Virgin Islands and Northern Mariana Islands are not. These six quarters, released in 2009, make up the District of Columbia and United States Territories Quarter Program.
The America the Beautiful National Parks Quarter Dollar Coin Program will begin issuing quarters in 2010. Fifty six coins, released at a rate of five quarters per year, will be issued in the program. The final quarter will be released in 2021. The quarters will be released in the order each was established as a national site.
State collection quarters are both a great investment and a great place to start a coin collection for beginners. Learn more about investing in state quarter sets.
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