CVC & Collectables presents the 2003-P Missouri State Quarter, a Philadelphia-mint business strike from the 50 State Quarters program featuring Lewis and Clark returning down the Missouri River beneath the Gateway Arch, with the bicentennial legend “Corps of Discovery 1804–2004.”
Coin Highlights
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Maker: United States Mint – Philadelphia (“P” mintmark)
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Date: 2003
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Program: 50 State Quarters – Missouri, 24th coin overall and 4th release of 2003
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Catalog: KM# 346 (Missouri State Quarter)
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Metal: Copper–nickel clad (91.67% copper, 8.33% nickel)
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Weight: 5.67 g
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Diameter / Edge: 24.3 mm; reeded edge
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Mintage (P business strike): 225,000,000 coins
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Obverse: George Washington portrait by John Flanagan (modified by William Cousins), with UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, LIBERTY, IN GOD WE TRUST, QUARTER DOLLAR, and P mintmark.
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Reverse: Lewis and Clark in a keelboat on the Missouri River, returning to St. Louis as they pass beneath the Gateway Arch; inscriptions MISSOURI 1821, CORPS OF DISCOVERY 1804–2004, 2003, and E PLURIBUS UNUM.
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Theme: “Corps of Discovery” – Missouri’s role as starting and ending point of the Lewis & Clark Expedition and its identity as the historic “Gateway to the West.”
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Grade: As described in the listing title; please see photos for the exact coin offered.
Historical Significance
Released on August 4, 2003, the Missouri quarter honors the 24th state, admitted to the Union on August 10, 1821. The “Corps of Discovery 1804–2004” design marks the bicentennial of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, showing the explorers’ keelboat heading back to St. Louis—where the journey began and ended—symbolically passing under the modern Gateway Arch that now commemorates westward expansion.
By combining the 19th-century exploration scene with a 20th-century monument, the coin ties Missouri’s frontier river heritage directly to its later role as the nation’s “Gateway to the West,” capturing two centuries of history in a single riverscape.
Collectibility
With a mid-range 225 million P-mint mintage, the 2003-P Missouri State Quarter is readily available yet essential for any complete 50 State Quarters set. Collectors look for bright Uncirculated examples where the boat, figures, river detail, and Arch remain sharp—elements that can blur quickly on circulated pieces.
Variety and error hunters pay particular attention to 2003 Missouri quarters for strike-through grease issues, die cracks, and Denver’s so-called “Washington’s feathers” look (extra lines near Washington’s hair from worn dies), making this a fun date to search in bulk lots and rolls.
