Louisiana Purchase Expo $1.00 Gold Coins – 1903

Two Issues to Honor the 100^th Anniversary of the Purchase

René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle was a French explorer who located the Mississippi River in 1682. La Salle claimed the area around the river for France and named it Louisiana, in honor of his king, King Louis XVI. This was a large area and would become dramatically important as the United States grew. By the middle of the next century, the French and British were embroiled in the “French and Indian War” and that resulted in the French losing much of their territory. But the land of the Mississippi River Basin still belonged to France.

Napoleon came to power in France in 1799 and he sought to sell all of his land around the Mississippi to the Americans because he thought that he would lose it to the British. This parcel of French-claimed land contained some 828,500 square miles. France and the fledgling United States negotiated and it was agreed that the US needed to pay France some $15 million dollars for the land. The treaty for the Louisiana Purchase was signed on April 30, 1803, and the purchase effectively doubled the size of the United States.

As the 100^th anniversary of the Purchase would occur in 1903, the United States began creating plans at around the turn of the 20^th century to have an exposition to honor the Centennial. In March 1901 President McKinley signed into law a bill authorizing the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, but in September of 1901 McKinley was assassinated at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, NY.

Given McKinley’s support for the exposition, when the commemorative gold coins were authorized, two different $1.00 Gold Coins were included. Instead of just one coin honoring President Thomas Jefferson who bought the Louisiana Purchase from France, a second coin was struck honoring the late supporter of the exposition – President William McKinley.  These would be the very first commemorative gold coins issued by the US Government.

In 1902, the Chief Engraver of the US Mint, Charles E. Barber, went to work on the designs. No one knows which design he created first but the Jefferson design has a portrait of President Thomas Jefferson facing the left. Around Jefferson is the motto “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.” On the reverse is the legend around the periphery “LOUISIANA PURCHASE EXPOSITION ST. LOUIS.” The denomination “ONE DOLLAR” is in the upper half of the central field and the dates “1803 – 1903” are in the lower half, separated by an olive branch.

The design for the President William McKinley Gold Dollar is exactly the same except for the portrait of President William McKinley replacing that of President Thomas Jefferson.  There were 17,500 of each of the two coins that were struck and distrusted. They were sold at the Exposition at a cost of $3 each and you could have them in a small white cardboard box or encase in a spoon or a brooch or some other item. The Mint explored various marketing avenues to spur sales. Most purchasers at the Exposition preferred the coins in pristine condition in the limited number of white cardboard boxes that were available.

Coin dealer and numismatic promoter, Farran Zerbe, distributed these coins to fairgoers and those ordering them through the mail. The price for each $1 Gold Coin was $3 and the coins were the same price regardless of whether they were intended as jewelry items or not. But most did not sell well in 1903 or when the fair resumed in 1904.

A total of 50,000 coins (25,000 of each type) were sent to the World’s Fair for sale. But only 17,500 coins of each type were sold and distributed. Zerbe, despite this lack of success, went on to become the American Numismatic Association’s President and he again was responsible for distributing the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition set of five coins, which sold many more than the Louisiana Purchase exposition. 

The first 100 specimens of each design were struck in a proof finish that was unique to US coinage. These were mounted on cardboard with presentation certificates, ornately framed under glass and presented to favored insiders and Mint officials.  They were not available to the public at the time at any price. The certificates were signed by Superintendent Landis, and by Rhine R. Freed, the Chief Coiner of the Philadelphia Mint. The coin was placed inside a holder with a wax paper window, through which the coins could be seen. They were secured into place with a string that bore the US mint’s wax seals.

Expand your collection today and shop for a 1903 Gold $1.00 Louisiana Purchase McKinley.