New presidential dollar coins debut in Portland
Arizona Coin Collector
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1227151515180470.xml&coll=7
The Oregonial - Oregon
New presidential dollar coins debut in Portland
Dozens line up to get their hands on the latest
incarnation of the U.S. golden buckThursday,
November 20, 2008 The Oregonian
Will new golden buck catch on? Flip a coin
Shirley Liu waited for 140 to tumble into her
hands after she stuck seven $20 bills in the
machine.
Roben Estes wanted some for the tours he gives
school kids at state and national parks.
Others just wanted to feel the heft and see the
sparkling gold color of a freshly minted coin.
The real question -- and one the U.S. Mint is
hoping Americans will answer in the
affirmative -- is whether retailers and consumers
nationwide will embrace the latest $1 coin.
Dozens lined up at the Real Change Exchange Tour
truck Wednesday at Portland's Pioneer Courthouse
Square, smoothing out their bucks, fivers,
Hamiltons and double sawbucks and feeding them
into an exchange machine for the new coins.
While the U.S. Mint's new coins are basically
the same size and weight as the Sacagawea
Golden Dollar, first produced in 2000, they
feature the likeness of U.S. presidents on
the heads side and the Statue of Liberty on
the tails side. Around the edge, they say
"In God We Trust" and "E Pluribus Unum."
The U.S. Mint has tried before to wrest paper
dollars from Americans, to limited effect.
But this time it's taking a "green" approach,
touting the longer life of coins as opposed
to paper.
Increased use of the new coins, said U.S.
Mint spokeswoman Ramona Sandoval, "could
save taxpayers billions of dollars each
year."
..