George Washington’s birthday celebration will have a golden tinge this year. Millions of new gold-colored dollar coins bearing the first president’s likeness are being introduced in time for the festivities.
The question is whether people will reject them as they did the two previous $1 coins.
U.S. Mint officials are hoping they have overcome the problems that doomed the Susan B. Anthony and Sacagawea dollars. Coin experts are skeptical.
The new $1 coins, the first in a series featuring four presidents a year, were to go into circulation on Thursday, just before next week’s President’s Day celebrations.
Learning from past mistakes, the Mint is making sure the coins will be widely available so people will not be disappointed when they show up at banks looking for the coins.
“For the vast majority of Americans, they will be able to get the new dollar coin on the day that we issue it,” Mint Director Edmund Moy said.
In another switch from the previous dollar coins, this one will see design changes every three months. Washington will be followed this year by Presidents John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison.
Four new presidents will be honored each year in the order they served, in a series that as of now will run into 2016.
