Though the traditional period of U.S. commemorative coinage did not end until 1954 with the final strikings of Washington-Carver pieces, the seed of discontinuation had been sewn many years before.

One of the earliest attempts to stem the on rushing commemorative tide was made by President Herbert Hoover in 1928. Hoover vetoed a bill authorizing a commemorative half dollar for the 75th anniversary of the Gadsden Purchase. In the letter accompanying his veto, Hoover explained that while the Gadsden Purchase was certainly an important milestone in our nation’s development, he needed to draw the line on the growing number of commemorative coinage authorizations and had decided to do it with the Gadsden Purchase bill.

While Hoover’s move did slow the proliferation of commemoratives, its impact was short-lived, and by the early 1930s it seemed that commemorative coins were being sought by nearly every group marking an historical anniversary -- no matter how minor or local in nature. 1936 would prove to be the pinnacle year of abuse with no less than 21 1936-dated commemorative coins issued.

The Treasury Department had been opposing commemorative coinage legislation for several years by the time Franklin D. Roosevelt became President in 1933, and FDR soon joined the battle to put an end to the increasingly questionable commemorative programs. In a letter to Congress, FDR voiced his opposition to such issues and included public confusion, an increased risk of counterfeiting (due to so many new designs), and difficulties in meeting the needs of the nation’s commerce as reasons why the programs should be discontinued.

Also included in FDR’s letter was a statement of his belief that many of the events being commemorated on half dollars were not truly national in character, and that such local or regional celebrations would be better marked by the issuance of commemorative medals!

I was reminded of these tidbits of U.S. commemorative history recently while coming back from a small coin show in Greenville, South Carolina. The show did not offer a great many coins that I was interested in, but just before I left I came across a commemorative half celebrating the 300th anniversary of the founding of York County, Maine -- the state’s first county. The coin met my personal criteria for brilliance, lustre, and overall eye appeal, as well as for grade and price. After a few minutes of examination, a deal was struck and I was one piece closer to completing my commemorative set.

Thinking about the piece on the long drive back from the show, I realized that the York County commemorative was exactly the kind of event that Roosevelt was thinking about when he referred to local and/or regional celebrations. While I’m sure the residents of York County, Maine were proud of their long history in 1936 (and are likely still proud of it today!), the founding of the county in 1636 is hardly an event of significant national importance. If Roosevelt had had his way, the event would have been marked by a national commemorative medal instead of a half dollar!

As a collector of both U.S. commemorative coins and medals I would be interested in a U.S. Mint produced York County piece either way, but the rather dubious "national significance" of the event behind the coin makes for interesting "What if?" fodder for this collector.

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