Maryland America the Beautiful Quarter

The US Mint will release the Maryland America the Beautiful Quarter in the second half of 2013. This will represent the nineteenth overall release in the America the Beautiful Quarters Program, created to highlight the beauty of America’s National Parks and Sites.

The site to be depicted on Maryland’s quarter has already been selected as the Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine. The full register of sites was released by the United States Mint on September 10, 2009, which gave collectors a roadmap for the twelve year series of circulating commemorative quarters.

Preparations for the design of the Fort McHenry Quarter probably won’t be underway until 2012, when the United States Mint will prepare several candidate designs based on source materials provided by a federal liaison for the National Monument. These candidates will undergo reviews by various committees before the final selection is made by the Treasury Secretary.

About Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine

Every American learns the words to America’s national anthem “The Star Spangled Banner” at some point during their childhood. Not everyone is aware of the exact circumstances that inspired a young Francis Scott Key to pen the words to this memorable song.

During the war of 1812, Key was holed up inside a British attack ship while Maryland’s Fort McHenry was being bombarded with gunfire and missiles. When the smoked cleared in the morning, Key was overjoyed to see that his country’s flag was still waving proudly over the fort, and he was moved to pen the historic poem that would soon become the national anthem.

Fort McHenry was completed in 1802, and was built in the shape of a five pointed star. This architectural style was quite popular at the time, as it allowed each guard tower to be seen by at least two other guard towers. When necessary, the entirety of the Fort could be protected by as few as five men stationed in the points of the star.

Fort McHenry is a structure of great significance to the early history of the United States, and as a result it was protected as a national monument in 1925. Visitors to the monument and historical shrine can spend a day imagining life as a revolutionary, and might even get to assist with the changing of the flag.