Quarter (United States Coin)
A quarter dollar, commonly shortened to quarter, is a coin worth ¼ of a United States dollar or 25 cents. The quarter has been produced since 1796. The choice of 25¢ as a denomination, as opposed to 20¢ which is more common in other parts of the world, originated with the practice of dividing Spanish Milled Dollars into eight wedge shaped segments (cf. "pieces of eight"); at one time "two bits", i.e. two wedges each wedge an eighth, thus a quarter of the Spanish real, was a common nickname for a quarter.
Read more about Quarter (United States Coin): Current Design, List of Designs, Silver Series, Copper-nickel Clad Series
Famous quotes containing the words quarter and/or states:
“The most winning woman I ever knew was hanged for poisoning three little children for their insurance-money, and the most repellent man of my acquaintance is a philanthropist who has spent nearly a quarter of a million upon the London poor.”
—Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859–1930)
“I asked myself, “Is it going to prevent me from getting out of here? Is there a risk of death attached to it? Is it permanently disabling? Is it permanently disfiguring? Lastly, is it excruciating?” If it doesn’t fit one of those five categories, then it isn’t important.”
—Rhonda Cornum, United States Army Major. As quoted in Newsweek magazine, “Perspectives” page (July 13, 1992)