The 2014 Everglades America the Beautiful Silver Bullion Coin will be the final 2014 strike of the US Mint’s America the Beautiful Silver Bullion Coin™ Program. It will also be the twenty-fifth out of fifty six new coins to be issued under the series which debuted in 2010 and is set to run until 2021.
Each coin in the program will be struck from five ounces of .999 fine silver to a diameter of three inches with the coins weight and fineness to be inscribed on the edge of each piece.
The America’s Beautiful National Parks Quarter Dollar Coin Act of 2008 authorized these strikes along with circulating quarters. Both series (the bullion and the quarters) will feature similar designs on their reverse, with a portrait of George Washington gracing the obverse.
On the reverse of this specific coin, a design showcasing a portion of Everglades National Park in Florida will be found. Design candidates for the strike should be released by the Mint in early 2013 for review by the Citizen’s Coinage Advisory Committee and the Commission of Fine Arts. Their recommendations will be taken into consideration by the Treasury Secretary when he/she makes the final selection. Their choice should be announced in early 2014.
Under the terms of the America the Beautiful Silver Bullion program, there will be one strike from each state, the District of Columbia and the five US territories – Guam, US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands. These strikes will showcase a site of national interest located within that jurisdiction and may honor a national park, national memorial, national forest, etc.
The US Mint will only sell these bullion coins to its network of authorized purchasers. Those in the network will then resell them for a slight markup above the spot price of the silver they contain to coin dealers and individuals.
Since this is the last America the Beautiful Silver Bullion coin for 2014, it will be preceded by coins honoring Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee, Shenandoah National Park in Virginia, Arches National Park in Utah and Great Sand Dunes in Colorado.
Everglades National Park in Florida
Unlike most national parks which were created to protect a geographic feature, Everglades National Park in Florida offers protection to a fragile ecosystem.
This ecosystem was created over thousands of years and once consisted of almost 11,000 square miles. But, with man’s encroachment by the early 1900’s, this delicate balance of nature was severely threatened. Seeing the land as more usable if farmed or built on, many drainage projects were initiated to remove the water.
Unknown by many, the Everglades is actually an extremely slow-moving river traveled at a rate of around .25 miles an hour. Fed by the Kissimmee River through Lake Okeechobee, the Everglades slowly dump into the Florida Bay. Before that occurs, however, the forces of the water create an environment that thousands of species call home.
If asked, most immediately think of the dangerous creatures that live in the Everglades like the American crocodile, the alligator or the venomous snakes. But countless other exotic specimens can be found here including an astonishing 350 plus species of birds and four different types of sea turtles.
It was precisely to safeguard this environment that the park was initially created in 1934. However, funding issues during the Great Depression and the country’s concentration on World War II prevented an official dedication until 1947.