Find Similar Books - A Pocketful of History: Four Hundred Years of America--One State Quarter at a Time by Jim Noles

A Pocketful of History: Four Hundred Years of America--One State Quarter at a Time

by Jim Noles

Summary

Our past is all around us--even in the spare change jangling in your purse or pocket. For the past decade, the United States Mint has offered America a pocketful of history through its popular 50 State Quarters Program. When the final quarters are released, thousands of us will have collected these commemorative coins, one for each state and territory in the Union. But what can we learn about our country's stories and lore from a mere $12.50 in quarters?

Jim Noles's fascinating book, "A Pocketful of History", looks at each quarter in turn to answer these curious questions...

-Who is Caesar Rodney and why is he riding a horse on Delaware's quarter?

-What is the real history behind Abraham Lincoln's political career in his home state of Illinois?

-What happened to New Hampshire's symbol, the "Old Man in the Mountain", three years after its quarter was minted?

-What famous racecourse is memorialized on the quarter from the state known as "Crossroads of America"?

-Why is Pennsylvania known as the Keystone State?

-Why did California choose to honor preservationist John Muir rather than a gold-mining '49er?

...any many, many more.

"A Pocketful of History" tells the story behind each state's quarter--how each state chose its design; what is important about the people, scenes, and themes depicted on the coins; and what the collection tells us about ourselves. It's an entertaining and enlightening journey through 400 years of America--in twenty-five-cent coins.