2009 Native American Dollars
2009 Native American $1 Coin - Click to Enlarge
2009 Native American Dollars were issued beginning in 2009, but they have a familiar look about them since they are, in affect, the second generation of the Sacagawea Golden Dollars which were launched in 2000.
The Native American $1 coin obverse or heads side still features an image of the well-known Sacagawea, the young Shoshone woman who accompanied Meriwether Lewis and William Clark on their historic expedition.
The reverse, however, changes annually to honor an Indian tribe or an individual Native American who made and an important contribution to the development of the United States.
Dictated by the Native American $1 Coin Act of 2007, the coin designs shall be featured in an order consistent with the true chronological order of the events being illustrated. Also, the law dictates a new coin every year until 2016, at which time the Secretary of the Treasury will decide on additional designs.
The 2009 Native American $1 Coin features an agricultural theme.
"With this coin, we hope to educate Americans... on how Native Americans helped make this country the premier food producer in the world," United States Mint Director Ed Moy said when the first design was introduced at the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) festival in Jan. 2009.
The 2009 design depicts a Native American woman planting corn, beans and squash seeds indicative of the "Three Sisters" method of crop planting. This ingenious method helped cement the United States future position as a dominant force in world food production.
The Native American $1 Coin Act also mandates an equal mintage with each yearly Presidential $1 coin. As of September, 23.8 million were struck in Denver and 27.3 million in Philadelphia for a 2009 total of 51.1 million.
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US $4.59
Native American Dollar Specifications
Mintmark: D, and P for circulation versions and S for proof
Finish/Condition: Circulated, Proof
Composition: 88.5% copper, 6% zinc, 3.5% manganese, 2% nickel (manganese-brass)
Weight: 8.1 grams
Diameter: 26.5 mm or 1.043 inches
Edge: lettering
Date of Issue: 2 January 2009
Mintages: Based on Demand
Obverse Designer/Sculptor: Glenna Goodacre
Reverse Designer/Sculptor: Norman E. Nemeth
