2020 Cook Islands 25₵ Clad Lost States of America 4-pc Proof Set

The States That Never Were Are the Coins You Gotta Have!

Everyone knows that the United States of America is comprised of 50 states. These days it’s hard to even imagine the nation any other way. But from the start in 1776 with the first 13 states all the way up to Hawaii becoming the 50th state in 1959, the country’s history has witnessed numerous attempts to establish alternative states that, had they been successful, could have drastically changed the map of North America. To bring that history to life, the Cook Islands has released a “Lost States of America” coin series that’s designed to complement the U.S. Mint’s 50 States Quarter program.

Created by U.S. Mint Designer Joel Iskowitz

To bring this series to life, the Cook islands turned to award-winning artist Joel Iskowitz, a prolific coin and medal designer from New York, who designed more than 50 coins and medals for the U.S. Mint while part of its Artistic Infusion Program from 2005 to 2018. A student of history, Iskowitz based his designs on the unique stories of these Lost States of America.

Legal-Tender Proof Coins

Each coin in this series is a legal-tender clad quarter struck in gorgeous Gem Proof condition, meaning they were all expertly crafted from hand-selected planchets, polished dies and multiple strikes to produce beautifully frosted details rising over mirror-like fields. Here you can secure the first four coins in the series released in 2020. The coins include:

• LOST STATE OF FRANKLIN – This was unrecognized territory created in 1784 in Eastern Tennessee from land that North Carolina had offered Congress to help pay debts from the American Revolution War — this despite the land being offered was the property of Native Americans. The name was chosen in a failed effort of gaining the support of Founding Father Ben Franklin. Franklin is featured on the coin’s obverse while the area’s natural wilderness in the Appalachian Mountains is shown on the reverse.
• LOST STATE OF DESERET – Deseret was a provisional state that was created by the settlers of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints led by Brigham Young that existed from 1849 to 1850 in Salt lake City. It encompassed nearly all of present-day Utah and Nevada, large portions of California, Arizona, and parts of Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming, Idaho, and Oregon. The bust of Brigham Young is featured on the coin’s while bees busy at work in their hive are shown on the reverse.
• LOST STATE OF JACINTO – This “state” would have started at the Brazos River and gone to the eastern part of present-day Texas. It was named for the Battle of Jacinto in April 1836 when General Samuel Houston and his 800-man strong army of Texans defeated the army of 1,500 Mexican troops led by General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna and gained independence for Texas from Mexico. A blazing portrait of Houston is featured on the obverse while a scene from the battle is shown on the reverse.
• LOST STATE OF McDONALD – This was an unrecognized territory with its own provisional government that existed briefly in 1961, when it attempted to secede from the state of Missouri. The reason for this attempted secession was the omission of popular resort town Noel, Missouri from maps printed in 1961. The coin’s obverse features a profile of a Native American wearing a full headdress, while the reverse depicts an elk to represent the Elk River which runs through McDonald County.

Each coin measures 26 mm in diameter and will come protected in a pouch ready to join your collection. These coins are an ideal way to expand, augment and put an exclamation point on your U.S. Mint 50 State Quarters and America the Beautiful Quarters programs. But comparted to the millions of proof quarters struck by the U.S. Mint each year, the limited edition of 250,000 for these Lost States quarters pales in comparison. Click this impressive four-piece set to your cart today!