California Pacific International Exposition half dollar

The California Pacific International Exposition half dollar is a commemorative fifty-cent piece struck by the United States Bureau of the Mint in 1935 and 1936. The coin was issued to honor the California Pacific Exposition, which was a world’s fair held in San Diego’s Balboa Park in 1935-36. It is the only half dollar to bear the name of a state or city, and the only one to depict a U.S. president on the obverse.

About California Pacific International Exposition half dollar in brief

The California Pacific International Exposition half dollar is a commemorative fifty-cent piece struck by the United States Bureau of the Mint in 1935 and 1936. Its obverse depicts Minerva and other elements of the Seal of California; the reverse shows buildings from the fair. Legislation for the half dollar moved through Congress without opposition in early 1935, and Aitken was hired to design it. Once his creation was approved, the San Francisco Mint produced 250,000 coins, but expected sales did not materialize. Left with more than 180,000 pieces they could not sell, the Exposition Commission went back to Congress for further legislation so it could return the unsold pieces and have new coins, dated 1936. Although the commission was successful in getting the legislation passed, it was less so in selling the coins, and 150,000 1936-dated pieces were returned to the Mint. The coins, of either date, sell in the low hundreds of dollars today. The coin was issued to honor the California Pacific Exposition, which was a world’s fair held in San Diego’s Balboa Park in 1935-36. It was one of the largest expositions of its kind, and cost USD 20 million.

The fair attracted some 3.75 million visitors during its two-year run. The bill called for the issuance of a maximum of250,000 half dollars, and it was signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on May 3, 1935. It is the only half dollar to bear the name of a state or city, and the only one to depict a U.S. president on the obverse. The obverse shows a depiction of Minerva with a shield on her right, and a staff on her left with her hand with her helmet on her hand. The reverse shows the California State Seal with the words LIBERTY and PLURIBUSUNUM on the reverse. It has been the subject of several lawsuits, including one in which the U.N. Security Council ruled that the coin was illegal to mint. The U.K. Mint has since issued a series of commemorative coins featuring President Roosevelt on the back of the coin, including the $50 Panama-Pacific issue and the $100 San Francisco half dollar. The $50 San Francisco issue was the first to feature a portrait of the late President Theodore Roosevelt, who died in office in 1945. The half dollar was the last commemorative coin to depict the late president, and was struck in the early 1950s.

Related posts:

Panama–Pacific commemorative coins San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge half dollar Seated Liberty dollar Pilgrim Tercentenary half dollar