The American Innovation® $1 Coin Program is a multi-year series featuring distinctive reverse (tails) designs that pay homage to America’s ingenuity and celebrate the pioneering efforts of individuals or groups from each of the 50 States, District of Columbia, and U.S. territories.
One of the Nation’s greatest strengths is its entrepreneurial spirit and the remarkable innovation and discovery it unleashes. The United States Mint is proud to celebrate innovation and honor the spirit of America with the 2022 American Innovation $1 Coin Reverse Proof Set™.
The 2022 American Innovation $1 Coin Reverse Proof Set features four stunning coins encased in a clear plastic lens in a beautifully designed package. This celebration of significant American innovations and/or innovators and pioneering efforts in Rhode Island, Vermont, Kentucky, and Tennessee will make a great addition to any collection or the perfect gift for a special occasion.
The reverse proof coins feature frosted backgrounds and brilliant, mirror-like finishes, creating a magnificent contrast.
The 2022 American Innovation $1 Coin Reverse Proof Set features coins with the following designs:
-
- The common obverse (heads) features a dramatic representation of the Statue of Liberty in profile with the inscriptions “IN GOD WE TRUST” and “$1.” The design by Justin Kunz also includes a privy mark of a stylized gear, representing industry and innovation. The edge-incused inscriptions are “2022,” “S” mint mark, and “E PLURIBUS UNUM.”
-
- Rhode Island – The reverse (tails) design honors naval innovation with a depiction of American naval architect, mechanical engineer, and yacht design innovator Nathanael Herreshoff’s famous Reliance yacht at full speed in the waters surrounding Rhode Island. The design is bordered by a rope evoking the nautical scene. Inscriptions are “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA” and “RHODE ISLAND.”In 1876, Herreshoff introduced multi-hulled boats to yacht racing when his catamaran Amaryllis won the New York Centennial Regatta. He received the first U.S. patent for a sailing catamaran in 1927.
-
- Vermont – The reverse design celebrates snowboarding, featuring a young snowboarder in the air performing a trick called a “melon grab,” set against a mountainous winter skyline inspired by the landscape of Vermont. The intent of the design is to capture a sense of the energy and exuberance of snowboarding through movement implied by diagonal lines and curved shapes. Inscriptions are “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA” and “VERMONT.”While the concept of riding a board downhill on snow has existed since at least the 1920s, snowboarding’s technological development and transformation from a novel recreation to a worldwide competitive phenomenon are tied closely to the State of Vermont.
-
- Kentucky – The reverse design features a banjo, an important bluegrass instrument, tilted to one side, alluding to the rhythm and movement of the music. Inscriptions are “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,” “BLUEGRASS,” and “KENTUCKY.”From jazz to Christian rock, folk to country, Kentucky boasts a deep contribution to America’s musical heritage. Above all, it is synonymous with bluegrass music, a musical innovation that takes its name directly from the State.
- Tennessee – The reverse design honors the Tennessee Valley Authority’s leading role in establishing rural electrification with its depiction of a Tennessee farm with newly installed power lines lining the road. Inscriptions are “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,” “TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY,” and “TENNESSEE.”As late as the mid-1930s, 90% of rural homes were without electricity. In 1933, TVA was created to address the Tennessee Valley’s most important issues in energy and environmental development. It constructed transmission lines to serve “farms and small villages that are not otherwise supplied with electricity at reasonable rates.” Many of its more than 9,000 employees were Tennesseans who helped build 16 hydroelectric dams in the Tennessee Valley between 1933 and 1944, with Tennessee quickly becoming the Nation’s largest public utility supplier.
