The 2020 National Park America the Beautiful Silver Uncirculated Coin will be issued by the United States Mint as the first of five 2020-dated releases of the America the Beautiful Five Ounce Silver Uncirculated Coin™ series. A design on the reverse of the coin will be emblematic of the National Park of American Samoa found in the United States territory of American Samoa.
This coin also marks the fifty-first of fifty-six strikes scheduled to be released in the silver uncirculated series. Coins of the program debuted with five 2010-dated releases and have a schedule of five new releases annually until the last strike is offered in 2021.
Each coin honors a different site of national interest with a design on its reverse. One site was chosen from each state, the District of Columbia and the five US territories to total the aforementioned fifty-six. Release order for the coins is dictated by the order in which the selected sites came under the direct control of the federal government.
Coins of this series are struck as the numismatic versions of the America the Beautiful Silver Bullion Coins™ which themselves feature the same designs as the America the Beautiful Quarters® Program. As such, all three programs feature the same basic obverse and reverse imagery.
However, only these uncirculated coins and their bullion counterparts are struck from five ounces of .999 fine silver. Each also features the extremely large diameter of three inches.
Since the uncirculated coins and the bullion coins feature the same designs and specification, it can be difficult to tell coins of the two series apart. The easiest way is to look for a mintmark on the coins. A ‘P’ indicates it was struck at the US Mint’s facility in Philadelphia and is only present on the uncirculated coins. The bullion coins are also struck in Philadelphia but carry no mintmark.
The reverse design for this coin should be unveiled by the US Mint in late 2019.
National Park of American Samoa
The National Park of American Samoa is found on portions of three separate island of the United States territory of American Samoa. It was officially established on October 31, 1988.
The three islands where the park is found are Tutuila, Ofu-Olosega, and Ta‘ū. The park includes 9,000 acres and offers the varying features of coral reefs and rain forests.
Despite the park being created for the preservation of the natural resources of the region, activities such as snorkeling and hiking are popular in the area.
The National Park Service has this descriptive paragraph for the park:
"Explore the Islands of Sacred Earth"
"Located in the Southwest Pacific Ocean, the national park is on three volcanic and mountainous islands clothed in tropical rainforest, ringed with rugged cliffs, glistening beaches, and coral reefs.
The national park preserves and protects tropical rainforests, coral reefs, fruit bats, and the Samoan culture."