The 2015 Kisatchie America the Beautiful Silver Bullion Coin will be the second 2015 strike of the US Mint’s America the Beautiful Silver Bullion Coin™ Program. The coin will also be the twenty-seventh strike out of fifty-six that will appear in the completed series which launched in 2010 and ends in 2021.
Each of these coins will be struck from five ounces of .999 fine silver to a massive diameter of three inches. The America’s Beautiful National Parks Quarter Dollar Coin Act of 2008 which authorized them also dictates that the coins weight and fineness will be inscribed on the coins edge.
George Washington, the first President of the United States, will be seen on the obverse of each coin in the series. This is because the entire series is to feature the same basic designs as found on the circulating America the Beautiful Quarter Dollars that are issued at approximately the same time.
The reverse of this strike will show a portion of Kisatchie National Forest in Louisiana. Design candidates for the coin will probably be unveiled in early 2014 giving the appropriate parties time to review and comment on them before a final design is chosen. The responsibility of making that final selection is left to the Treasury Secretary according to the authorizing act.
In total, the America the Beautiful Silver Bullion program will include fifty-six new coins with 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. Each coin will feature a different reverse design which honors a site of national interest such as a national park or national forest.
Only a network of authorized purchasers will be allowed to purchase these bullion coins directly from the Mint. This network will then resell them to coin dealers and individuals for a slight mark-up over the market price of the silver contained within them.
A coin showcasing Homestead National Monument of America located in Nebraska will precede this strike in 2015. It will be followed by three coins honoring Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina, Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge in Delaware and Saratoga National Historical Park in New York.
Kisatchie National Forest in Louisiana
Encompassing more than 604,000 acres in central and northern Louisiana, Kisatchie National Forest is the only national forest located within the state’s boundaries.
Kisatchie consists of bayous, bald cypress groves and old growth pine in seven different parishes of the state with its headquarters located in Pineville. The forest is separated into five distinct ranger districts including Calcasieu, Caney, Catahoula, Kisatchie and Winn.
Many different recreational opportunities await those who take some time to enjoy the area and include boating, cycling, fishing, all-terrain vehicle (ATV) use, horseback riding, etc. The forest also maintains forty different recreational sites and over 100 miles of trails.
The forest itself was created in the early 1930’s in an effort to protect the natural resources located there. Visitors today will be happy to find those goals have been met.