Had a conversation on here with someone about their trip to Chicago. I made a comment about Andersonville being an old Civil War POW camp by Chicago. Problem was, it wasn't Andersonville, it was Camp Douglas. Andersonville was in Georgia. I think my brain confused them becuase Douglas is sometimes referred ot as the Andersonville of the North.
After apologizing for my inept brain, I quickly went through my commemorative collection and pullled out this little gem below.
Got a 1994-P Prisoner of War Commemorative Silver Dollar for the collection through my mail order coin dealer a while back. It was minted to help fund the National Prisoner of War Museum in Andersonville, Georgia. Andersonville was the site of one of the largest Confederate POW camps during the Civil War. It was Brutal place. Thousands died there. Now it's where we honor all American POWs from every conflict.
The coin is a chunky piece. 26.73 grams. 38.1 mm diameter. 2.8 mm thick. It is 90% silver, 10% copper. It has a reeded edge. Bottom line, it is good weight in the hand.
The proof version was struck at the Philadelphia Mint. Only 224,449 made, so not a huge number.
The obverse shows a bald eagle in flight with a broken chain around its leg flying through a ring of barbed wire. The words Liberty and Freedom along with In God We Trust and the date appear around the eagle. I beleive the symbolism is very appearant. The obverse design was created by Tom Nielsen. He is a decorated Vietnam veteran and former POW himself. The man had true inspriration for his art.
The reverse shows the museum. Designed by Edgar Z. Steever. "E Pluribus Unum," "United States of America," "One Dollar," and "National Prisoner of War Museum" are inscribed around it.
1994 was a big year for military commemoratives. The Mint also released coins for the Women in Military Service Memorial and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Three coins honoring those who served and sacrificed.
More than 800,000 Americans have been held as prisoners of war throughout our history. That number is staggering when you think about it. This coin reminds us they're not forgotten.
The photo doesn't do it justice. I should have taken it out of the capsule for the phot, but just didn't want to expose it.
This one earned a special spot in the collection.
If you have any further information about this coin you would like to add, like historical information I left out or want to correct any I may have gotten wrong, please drop it in the comments.
Thanks for reading,
Joe
Notes:
-All content is mine unless otherwise annotated.
-Images are my own unless otherwise noted.
-Photos edited using MS Paint and/or iPhone SE.
-Page Dividers from The Terminal Discord.