The 25th Anniversary of the Sacagawea Dollar

A Legacy of Glenna Goodacre and the U.S. Mint

Coins are a tangible link to our history and a reflection of our national identity. They carry symbols of who we are and what we value as a society.

– Paul Volker

With the stroke of a pen, President William Jefferson Clinton signed into effect the United States $1 Coin Act of 1997 on the first day of December. The law called the U.S. Mint to make a coin to replace the Susan B. Anthony Dollar Coin. The new dollar coin would be made with 77% copper, 12% zinc, 7% manganese, and 4% nickel. It would have a “golden” color to distinguish it from the quarter—a criticism of the Susan B. Anthony dollar—and depict an image of Sacagawea, a Native American teenager who served as an interpreter on the famous 19th century Lewis and Clark Expedition across North America.

The design for the new dollar coin would involve a nationwide competition among invited artists, including U.S. Mint staff artists, who would submit a design to be selected by the United States Commission of Fine Arts. Several months later, Glenna Goodacre, a portraitist and sculptor originally from Lubbock, Texas, won the commission to create a portrait of Sacagawea on the obverse or front of the new coin.

The U.S. dollar is not just a currency; it’s a symbol of America’s position in the world.

– George Soros

Already nationally recognized for her work, including the Vietnam Women’s Memorial on the National Mall, Goodacre’s artistry on the Sacagawea $1 coins continues in Native American $1 Coin Program. For over 20 years, a piece of United States history conveyed through Goodacre’s creativity has been in the pocket of millions of Americans and represented the United States in worldwide commerce.

2025 marks the 25th anniversary of the Sacagawea $1 Coin Program. In commemoration, this exhibition highlights historic dollar coins, the Native American $1 Coin Program, Glenna Goodacre’s artistry, and the symbolic and definitive role of United States currency in the world today.

 

Upcoming Program:

Gallery Tour
February 11, 2025
5:15 PM

Delve into the life of Sacagawea and her powerful symbolism, explore Goodacre’s iconic depiction, and learn about the Native American Dollar Program. This engaging tour sets the stage for the U.S. Mint lecture to follow.

Public Lecture featuring Deputy Chief Counsel for the U.S. Mint
February 11, 2025
6 PM

The East side doors will open at 5 PM.
Reception immediately following in the
Helen DeVitt Jones Sculpture Court

The U.S. Mint’s Deputy Chief Counsel Greg Weinman will discuss the fascinating story of how the Sacagawea Golden Dollar came to be, his experience working with Lubbock native Glenna Goodacre and her extraordinary role in designing this iconic coin, and how that experience directly led to creation of the Mint’s Artistic Infusion Program, which helped the Mint cultivate long-term relationships with a diverse group of American artists, breathing new life into the Mint’s coin designs. Weinman will also describe how the creation of the Sacagawea dollar catalyzed an entirely new approach to coin design and marketing at the United States Mint, including a greater role for coin collectors, academics, and other experts in the field. Finally, he will talk a bit about what the process looks like today and what the future of coin design may hold.

Greg Weinman is the United States Mint’s Deputy Chief Counsel, currently serving as the bureau’s Acting Chief Counsel. Greg has been with the United States Mint for more than 25 years, where among his many responsibilities he has been the legal point person for all matters concerning coin and medal design. Greg has served as Counsel to the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee, the body that publicly reviews all coin and medal designs, since its inception in 2003; Greg developed the charter for the Mint’s long-running Artistic Infusion Program, where outside artists are recruited to create unique coin and medal designs; and Greg has served as project counsel on all of the Mint’s circulating collectible coin programs over the past 20 years, including the America the Beautiful Quarters Program, the American Women Quarters Program, the Westward Journey Nickle Series, and the Native American $1 Coin Program. Between 1998 and 2000 Greg took a break from the legal office to serve as the Program Manager responsible for the development and launch of the Golden Dollar.

Before coming on board with the Mint in 1997, Greg served as a Senior Attorney with the Internal Revenue Service specializing in public contracts and licensing.

Greg is a native of Ohio where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Education degree from the University of Cincinnati in 1988, and briefly taught high school social studies before earning his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Toledo in 1991. Greg is licensed to practice law in the District of Columbia and the State of Ohio.