The Fort Vancouver Centennial half dollar is a commemorative fifty-cent
piece struck by the United States Bureau of the Mint in 1925 in honor of
the founding of Fort Vancouver in present-day Vancouver, Washington. The
obverse of the commemorative coin (pictured) depicts John McLoughlin,
who built the fort for the Hudson's Bay Company in 1825. The reverse
shows an armed frontiersman standing in front of the fort.
Representative Albert Johnson of Washington state was able to get
Congress to authorize a coin for Fort Vancouver's centennial
celebrations, and President Calvin Coolidge signed the authorizing act
on February 24, 1925. Laura Gardin Fraser was engaged to design the
coin on the recommendation of the United States Commission of Fine Arts.
The coins were struck at the San Francisco Mint, and then were flown to
Washington state by airplane as a publicity stunt. They sold badly, and
are valuable today since few of the coins survive.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Vancouver_Centennial_half_dollar>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1760:
In a treaty with Dutch colonial authorities, the Ndyuka people
of Suriname gained territorial autonomy.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ndyuka_people>
1846:
English astronomer William Lassell discovered Triton, the
largest moon of Neptune.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triton_%28moon%29>
1973:
U.S. vice president Spiro Agnew resigned after being charged
with tax evasion.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiro_Agnew>
1992:
After 20 years of construction, Vidyasagar Setu, the longest
cable-stayed bridge in India, was opened, joining Kolkata and Howrah.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vidyasagar_Setu>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
Weltschmerz:
An apathetic or pessimistic view of life; depression concerning or
discomfort with the human condition or state of the world; mal du
siècle, world-weariness.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Weltschmerz>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
By awarding the Nobel Peace Prize for 2022 to Ales Bialiatski,
Memorial and the Center for Civil Liberties, the Norwegian Nobel
Committee wishes to honour three outstanding champions of human rights,
democracy and peaceful co-existence in the neighbour countries Belarus,
Russia and Ukraine. Through their consistent efforts in favour of
humanist values, anti-militarism and principles of law, this year’s
laureates have revitalised and honoured Alfred Nobel’s vision of peace
and fraternity between nations — a vision most needed in the world
today.
--Norwegian Nobel Committee
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Norwegian_Nobel_Committee>
Show replies by date