100px|Reverse side of the Sacagawea dollar
The Sacagawea dollar is a United States dollar coin which has been minted every year since 2000. The Statue of Liberty was originally proposed as the design subject, but Sacagawea, the Shoshone guide of the Lewis and Clark expedition, was eventually chosen. The coin features an obverse by Glenna Goodacre and a reverse by Thomas D. Rogers. The new dollar coin was heavily marketed via a series of print, radio and television advertisements, as well as United States Mint partnerships with Wal-Mart and Cheerios. The Mint initially planned to issue a 22-karat gold collector Sacagawea dollar in addition to the regular production, but this idea was quickly abandoned after the Mint's authority to strike the coins was questioned. Soon after initial production of the dollar, it was noticed that some of the coins were struck with the obverse of a state quarter and the normal reverse. The Sacagawea dollar did not prove popular with the public, and mintage dropped sharply in the second year of production. In 2009, the reverse of the Sacagawea began changing yearly, with each design in the series depicting a different Native American accomplishment. (more...)
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_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
863:
Byzantine–Arab Wars: The Byzantine Empire decisively defeated the Emirate of Melitene in the Battle of Lalakaon, beginning the era of Byzantine ascendancy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Lalakaon
1942:
The Holocaust: In possibly the first Jewish ghetto uprising, residents of the Łachwa Ghetto in occupied Poland, informed of the upcoming "liquidation" of the ghetto, unsuccessfully fought against their Nazi captors. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%81achwa_Ghetto
1950:
Winning the Italian Grand Prix, Giuseppe Farina became the first Formula One world champion. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giuseppe_Farina
1991:
A fire killed 25 people locked inside a burning chicken processing plant in Hamlet, North Carolina, US. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamlet_chicken_processing_plant_fire
2004:
Russian security forces stormed a school in Beslan, North Ossetia, to force an end to a three-day hostage crisis, killing at least 334 of the over 1,100 hostages . http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beslan_school_hostage_crisis
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
éclat (n): A brilliant or successful effect; brilliant, ostentatious show; glory, renown http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%C3%A9clat
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
Your patience may have long to wait,
Whether in little things or great, But all good luck, you soon will learn,
Must come to those who nobly earn. Who hunts the hay-field over
Will find the four-leaved clover. --Sarah Orne Jewett http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Sarah_Orne_Jewett