Two for the Coin Collectors

Which space shuttle mission was the first to carry legal tender
American coinage as an official part of its cargo?

Where are those coins today?

JTM

On Sat, 12 Apr 2008 13:20:10 -0700 (PDT), "
wrote:

Which space shuttle mission was the first to carry legal tender
American coinage as an official part of its cargo?

Where are those coins today?

JTM

I'm guessing it was STS-93, which carried a dozen or so Sacagawea
dollars into orbit. AFAIK, they were, to date, the only 22k gold
versions of the coins that have been struck.

I think they are more or less permanently kept at Ft. Knox.

Scott

On Apr 12, 7:52*pm, (Scott
Stevenson) wrote:
On Sat, 12 Apr 2008 13:20:10 -0700 (PDT), "

wrote:
Which space shuttle mission was the first to carry legal tender
American coinage as an official part of its cargo?

Where are those coins today?

JTM

* I'm guessing it was STS-93, which carried a dozen or so Sacagawea
dollars into orbit. *AFAIK, they were, to date, the only 22k gold
versions of the coins that have been struck.

* I think they are more or less permanently kept at Ft. Knox.

* Scott

Thanks for taking a shot at it. I was afraid that either my E-mail
address or my initials would make the answer too obvious.

It was the same mission that miscarried the Reagan/Bush
administration's Teacher in Space. From the press kit for Challenger,
Mission 51-L:

"Two complete sets of the newly-minted U. S. Liberty coins will become
the first legal tender American coinage to make a trip into orbit on
mission 51-L.

The Liberty coins -- a silver dollar, half dollar, and $5 gold coin --
are being minted by authorization from Congress to honor the Statue of
Liberty's centennial anniversary in 1986 and to help raise funds for
the restoration and future maintenance of the statue and Ellis Island.
They are the first and only government-issue coins to feature the
Statue of Liberty.

School children in grades 4 through 8 will be given the chance to
learn about coins and American history in a special education package
-- Commemorating Liberty Through Coins -- which will be delivered to
every public, private and parochial school in the nation in March
1986.

The U. S. Liberty coins will be available at financial institutions
and department stores across the country in April 1986."

JTM