After the end of the early classic commemoratives in 1954, it was unclear what the future looked like for commemorative coins from the United States Mint. That is until December 23, 1981, when Congress would approve legislation allowing a new issue of commemorative coins. The special occasion breaking the 28-year hiatus? The 250th anniversary of George Washington’s birth.
(1982) George Washington 250th Anniversary of Birth
As the first commemorative issued since 1954, the 1982 George Washington Silver Half Dollar was the first 90% silver coin produced by the Mint since 1964. The surcharge of the coin was to “be used for the sole purpose of reducing the national debt” as its inception was to honor the 250th anniversary of the First Commander in Chief. Designed by Elizabeth Jones, the chief sculptor and engraver at the Mint at the time, the obverse features Washington atop a horse. The reverse features an image of Washington’s home, Mount Vernon.
Two different versions of the coin were struck. Over 2.2 million coins were produced at Denver with an Uncirculated finish. Even more coins were produced in the Proof finish as nearly 4.9 million coins were minted at San Francisco. The public responded well to the new coin sold directly by the Mint. However, secondary market prices initially hurt the value of the coins, although their prices would eventually come back down.
(1983-1948) Los Angeles Olympiad
With the success of the 1982 commemoratives, the Mint decided to move forward commemorating the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympic Games in an elevated fashion with the 1983 silver dollar, the 1984 silver dollar, and a 1984 gold coin. The 1983 dollar, designed by Elizabeth Jones, depicted a discus thrower inspired by the traditional Greek representation. The 1984 dollar, designed by Robert Graham, features the famous headless sculpture created by Graham placed at the entrance of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Both reverses of the 1983 and 1984 silver dollars feature and American Bald Eagle. The gold coin was the first gold coin issued by the United States for over 50 years. It features two runners on the obverse carrying the Olympic torch.
The Mint ramped up the number of issues quite a bit for the Olympic series. Both the 1983 and 1984 silver dollars featured coins from Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco in an Uncirculated condition. Each year also received a Proof version from San Francisco. The $10 gold coin featured Proof finishes from Philadelphia, Denver, San Francisco, and West Point. There was also an Uncirculated variety issued from West Point. In addition to single coin issues across the series, the Mint also created a 1983-1984 2-Coin set featuring Proof Silver Dollars, a 1983-1984 6-coin set featuring an Uncirculated and Proof version of each silver dollar in addition to an Uncirculated and Proof version of the $10 gold coin. Both the 1983 and 1984 also got their own 3-coin collector sets featuring the P, D, and S Uncirculated Silver Dollars. Lastly, there were 1983-1984 Gold and Silver Sets in both Uncirculated condition and Proof condition.
Despite the designs of the coins being classified as “less than stellar,” the program seemingly did well in terms of sales.
(1986) Statue of Liberty Centennial
The first copper-nickel clad half dollar commemorative was that of the 1986 Statue of Liberty design as represented the United States’ history as a nation of immigrants. The obverse features a ship of immigrants heading toward the New York Harbor with the Statue of Liberty in the foreground and the New York skyline in the background. The reverse depicts an immigrant family with all their belongings on the cusp of America. The Denver Mint took on the minting of the Uncirculated half dollar while the Proof was produced at San Francisco.
Also, a part of the commemorative series was the silver dollar. The obverse features Liberty in the foreground with the Ellis Island Immigration Center behind her. The reverse features Liberty’s torch with the words GIVE ME YOUR TIRED, YOUR POOR, YOUR HUDDLED MASSES YEARNING TO BREATHE FREE. The Uncirculated silver dollar was produced at Philadelphia while the Proof version was struck at San Francisco.
The gold coin featured in the series is the first to have been produced in over 50 years. The $5 denomination coin features a close-up view of Liberty on the obverse and an eagle on the reverse. Both the Proof and Uncirculated coins were minted at West Point.
The Statue of Liberty series was available in a plethora of ways, including 2-coin sets (both silver and gold), 3-coin sets in Proof and Uncirculated finishes featuring all three coins, and a 6-coin set that included one each of the half dollar, silver dollar, and gold coins in Proof and Uncirculated finishes.
Sales were once again successful for the commemoratives, but what made this program different was that legislation enacted for the series gave funding to non-profit organizations. While at the time of the legislation this seemed harmless, it would hinder the future of the commemorative coins as the programs were being created to help fundraise. This notion became more controversial as years went by.
(1987) U.S. Constitution Bicentennial, (1988) Seoul Olympiad, (1989) Congress Bicentennial
As the commemorative coin programs remained successful after their return, and quite profitable at that, the programs quickly became a yearly offering to the public. However, that saying “too much of a good thing” proved to be a very fitting sentiment. Themes did not hold as much value and their frequency diluted the market. While the last three programs of the 1980s did not fall subject to this idea, the start of the 1990s would see an exponential growth in commemoratives. Criticisms also revealed that with no significant anniversaries being the subject of the programs, the coins were thought to be “exploitative.” This belief also surrounded the commemorative coins of prior years back when they stopped being minted after 1954.
Source: NGC Coin; The Official 2025 Red Book
