Louisiana Purchase Exposition Gold Dollar
To commemorate the centennial of the 1803 Louisiana Purchase, and the subsequent Lewis and Clark expedition, two World's Fairs were held: the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis Missouri in 1904, and the Lewis and Clark Exposition in Portland Oregon in 1905. Part of the souvenirs included numismatic items, and the ANA’s proponent Farran Zerbe was at the center of promoting it. Zerbe avidly sought to popularize coin collecting through his travelling exhibit, “Money of the World.” He publicized the United States first commemorative coins – the Isabella Quarter and Columbus Half Dollar – issued for the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair.
He backed the gold dollars for the 1904 St. Louis Fair, with two versions of the medals being produced: Jefferson and McKinley. He was also placed in charge of distributing the entire mintage of Louisiana Purchase Exposition Gold coins. Zerbe spearheaded the initiative to have US gold $1 coins struck to commemorate the Lewis and Clark Exposition. He supported a commemorative with Lewis’ bust on one side, and Clark’s on the other. The appropriations bill for the Lewis and Clark Centennial Celebration was passed by Congress on April 13, 1904. It provided the mintage of 250,000 gold dollars that would bear likenesses of the two explorers. All dollars were struck at the Philadelphia Mint.
Zerbe was placed in charge of the distribution of the coins at the expostion. He enthusiastically trumpeted the coins. When sales were sluggish for the Louisiana Purchase pieces at $3 each. The Lewis and Clark dollars sold for $2 each when the fair opened on June 1, 1905. Zerbe soon raised the price to $2.50 by claiming that the 1904 issue was almost sold out.
Not satisfied with the US gold dollar as the sole numismatic commemorative of the occasion, Zerbe had private quarter and half dollar tokens struck in gold. These pieces depict Mt. Hood, and very little is known about them. It is believed that they were manufactured in Chicago and are akin to the quarter and half dollar tokens that were distributed at the St. Louis fair.
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