Columbia (SC) Sesquicentennial – 1936

Celebrating the 150^th Anniversary of Columbia’s Founding

The city of Columbia, South Carolina, was going to celebrate the Sesquicentennial of its founding in 1936. The legislation was introduced in the US House of Representatives in June of 1935. The catalyst for this legislation was the Columbia Sesqui-Centennial Commission. The bill had originally asked for only 10,000 coins to be struck but it was amended to a minimum of 25,000 had to be minted.  The legislation passed both houses of Congress and was signed into law by President Franklin Roosevelt.

The Commission selected 32-year-old Abraham Wolfe Davidson, a sculptor at Clemson College. His first efforts were designed and plaster models were made and sent to the Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) and the US Treasury. They were soundly rejected by both. The CFA commented that Davidson’s models were “unsatisfactory” and that they “lacked artistic merit.” But the Columbia Sesqui-Centennial Commission was unmoved. They wanted Davidson to design their coin. Two months later, and after several revisions, the models were approved.

Davidson’s obverse design had an allegorical representation of Lady Justice, bearing a sword in one hand and a set of legal scales in the other as the central vignette. Behind her and to the viewer’s left and right respectively, were the Old State House, which served as the State Capitol in 1786, and the new State Capitol, which was serving as the new Capitol in 1936. The word “LIBERTY” is off of her right shoulder and around the periphery was “SESQUI-CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION OF THE CAPITAL – COLUMBIA – SOUTH CAROLINA.”

The reverse has the South Carolina symbol – the Palmetto Tree – as the central vignette. Above the tree is “E PLURIBUS UNUM” and above that is an arc of 13 five-pointed stars. To the right of the tree is “IN GOD WE TRUST.” The periphery had “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA” and the denomination “HALF DOLLAR” around it.

The Sesqui-Centennial celebrations took place on their anniversary date which occurred in March of 1936. But no coins had yet been struck. In fact, the coins were not struck until the end of September. But as a concession to the Commission, the 25,000 were struck at all three mints. There were 9,007 coins struck at Philadelphia, 8,009 coins were struck in Denver and 8,007 coins were struck at San Francisco, fulfilling the 25,000 coins required and the extra 23 coins were struck for Assay.

The coins were not immediately sold. To be fair to collectors of the day, the Commission opened sales via the mail. Orders for single coins were accepted and filled first so that the coins could have the widest distribution possible. Orders for a single P-D-S set were filled next, with orders for multiple sets filled last. But the entire issue was oversubscribed by 15,000 coins. But now, in 1937, no additional coins could be struck.  The orders for single coins or 3-coin PDS sets were shipped in 3-coin imprinted cardboard holders.

Interestingly, a PDS set was sent to President Roosevelt in 1937 and six PDS sets were placed in a time capsule to be opened in 1986 (which it was) and those sets each brought several thousand dollars due to their historical significance and numismatic importance.

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