The Long Island Tercentenary half dollar is a commemorative coin struck by the United States Bureau of the Mint in 1936. The obverse (pictured) depicts a male Dutch settler and an Algonquian tribesman, and the reverse shows a Dutch sailing ship. It was designed by Howard Weinman, son of Mercury dime designer Adolph A. Weinman. The Long Island Tercentenary Committee wanted a coin to mark the 300th anniversary of the first European settlement there. The authorizing bill passed through Congress without opposition, but was amended in the Senate to add protections against past commemorative coin abuses, such as low mintages or a multiplicity of varieties. The coins were not struck until August 1936, too late for the anniversary celebrations. Four-fifths of the 100,000 coins sent to the Tercentenary Committee were sold, despite a lack of advertising. The half dollar now catalogues up to the low hundreds of dollars.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Island_Tercentenary_half_dollar
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
1762:
Seven Years' War: The Battle of Manila concluded with a British victory over Spain, leading to a twenty-month occupation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Manila_%281762%29
1927:
The Jazz Singer (poster pictured), one of the first feature- length motion pictures with a synchronized recorded music score, was released. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Jazz_Singer
1976:
Two bombs placed by the CIA-linked Cuban dissident group Coordination of United Revolutionary Organizations exploded on Cubana Flight 455, killing all 73 aboard. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coordination_of_United_Revolutionary_Organizations
1985:
Police constable Keith Blakelock was killed during rioting in the Broadwater Farm housing estate in Tottenham, London. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Keith_Blakelock
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
evert: 1. (transitive, often biology, physiology) To turn inside out (like a pocket being emptied) or outwards. 2. (transitive, obsolete) To move (someone or something) out of the way. 3. (transitive, obsolete, also figuratively) To turn upside down; to overturn. 4. (transitive, intransitive, obsolete, also figuratively) To disrupt; to overthrow. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/evert
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
Nation states are archaic leftovers from when each man feared the tribe over the hill, an attitude we can’t afford anymore. --David Brin https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/David_Brin