Reader comments
Hot off the press — State's coins spark delight

natalie | 1:15 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

Great pictures!!
I can't believe the mint makes 5 million to 8 million quarters PER DAY!! That's a ton!!

Do they have a quarter quota? lol

Anonymous | 5:11 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

Actually, it is 31.3 to 50 TONS of quarters...anyway you cut it, it's a lot!

KingM | 5:56 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

I think it looks great. Thank goodness they didn't go with yet another free commercial for the ski industry.

Comments continue below

Paul Revere | 6:12 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

What a great opportunity wasted. This quarter is an embarrassment. The golden spike means little to the history of Utah, and represents nothing to Utahns today.

Anonymous | 7:06 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

Stunning photos. Way to go Mike Terry!

Idahoan | 7:45 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

Paul, at least it's not just an image of a bird that no one really associates with the state as with Idaho's quarter. The golden spike is a big part of Utah's history.

SLC gal | 8:03 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

Personally my vote would have been for something that depicted the pioneers, remember them? They're pretty much responsible for UT, ID, NV, just to name a few. Hardly anyone outside of UT is going to realize that's promatory point unless they're some kind of history buff.

Matthew | 8:31 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

My Great grandfather (and several other relatives) were Mormon Pioneers that crossed the plains in wagons but they went on to help build the railroad which made the trip much easier for many, many more converts coming to settle the western interior.
The fact that the transcontinental railroad's significance to Utah and the Nation is too little known is an excellent reason to have it on the quarter.

I was thrilled by Idaho's quarter too.

Tom Tolman | 9:20 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

Paul, I canï¿½t believe someone would be so insensate about this event. The occurrence was not only important to Utah but vitally important to linking the East to the West. Even on Jeopardy they knew about the driving of the Golden Spike and its significance to the great expansion of this country. Utah school children learn about it yearly, and now this will give us the opportunity to let the rest of the Country know about this important event in our history. Let David McCullough, two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning author sum things up; ï¿½Understanding history is essential to understanding the present.ï¿½ History is everywhere, Paul. It is in nearly 400 national parks and every hometown. It covers everything from the remnants of ancient civilizations to the boyhood homes of U.S. Presidents to the stirring sagas of hard-fought wars to the reverberations of one woman refusing to give up her seat on a bus. History is a part of who we were, who we are, and who we will be. I suggest you enroll in a history class. If you donï¿½t know where you have been, you donï¿½t know where youï¿½re going. Tom Tolman, Bountiful Historian

Franz | 10:07 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

Way to say it , Tom. I grew up in Brigham City and was able to attend the centennial at Promentory Point. It was a great event. I later even got to touch the actual golden spike. Wow! I vowed to not wash that hand ever again (Fortunately, that didn't last long).
If there are people who don't know about it this will be a great opportunity for them to be exposed to a little bit of history; perhaps some of them will decide to find out more and discover one of the defining events in the history of this nation, and it happened right here in Utah.

Trey | 10:24 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

I think it is silly to have no representation of the Pioneers on the quarter, without them what would the west be?

Being from Arizona, this is why alot of people feel life Utah always misses the mark (except the Olympics, well done!)

Utahn | 10:37 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

The quater is awesome. What do you mean it's an opportunty wasted? The Transcontinental railroad was not just state or national event, it was a world event, especially as the laborers on the railroads were laborers for all over the world.

Athena | 10:37 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

It was exactly as I had hoped when I heard about the possibilities. I mean, seriously, skiing? There is TONS more to Utah than good ski resorts. I'm glad they chose Promentory Point.

bob and wendy | 11:21 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

WE LOVE UTAH!!! WOOO this quater is gettin me and her excited! i want a necklace that has a utah quarter on it! that would be pretty cool..... think about it peace we gotta get back to government!

Sweringen | 11:23 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

I'm relieved that the new Utah .25 doesn't depict a circa 1850s wagon with a man on the buckboard and a bunch of women in the back.

I agree that Promentory was an important event, but it was only incindental to Utah. Its occurance here was a function of time and distance.

I would have preferred a beehive or even the tired image of Delicate Arch.

kbute | 11:53 a.m. Oct. 16, 2007

The article had the date wrong; it was 1869, not 1896. Also, all you geographers; it was at Promentory, NOT PROMENTORY POINT. Promentory Point is about 30 miles south, at the "point" of the peninsula.

Me | 12:15 p.m. Oct. 16, 2007

This is funny, my wife got her Utah quarter almost 2 months ago.

Valencia, Ca | 12:40 p.m. Oct. 16, 2007

1896 is the year Utah was incorporated as a state. Even I know this, and I'm from California.

monday | 1:26 p.m. Oct. 16, 2007

Me...your wife obviously has a fake. I'm amazed either of you really believe you have a legitimate coin.

D&M | 1:45 p.m. Oct. 16, 2007

We like the coin very much. There are so many possibilities for Utah, but this choice will help keep the peace among the contentious people who write on this site. That's worth something!

DCR | 2:16 p.m. Oct. 16, 2007

It's too bad the Deseret News missed even mentioning the real history of how this quarter design came about, and thus, they continue to perpetuate a big problem in our society - that of forgetting those who have extra challenges and yet, work harder to achieve what they can which is often less than anyone else.

The original quarter design was done by a class of special ed. students at Syracuse Jr. High. Their original design did not include the golden spike, as they wanted to bring attn. to the Chinese workers who were pushed out of the way of the celebration in 1869. (the mint put the spike back in the design.) The design was done by girl named Jenni. The whole class was heavily involved in researching and discussing the project and coming up with the design idea.

Thanks to Mr. Price, his class, the school admin., the other teacher and the students who have made a real effort to include these students, and move forward. Mr. Price's class now has a great memory.

Too bad at least some of the students or Mr. Price were not invited to take the trip to the mint for their quarter.

Me | 2:55 p.m. Oct. 16, 2007

The coin is not a fake, it came directly from the treasury department. My point is that production of these coins started awhile ago. The news media was either misimformed or just decided stretch the truth a little to make the story sound better.

Hjalmar | 3:14 p.m. Oct. 16, 2007

Monday, I have no doubt that Me and his wife have a legimate Utah quarter and they did get it as much as two months ago. The US Mint produces several runs of coins for collector sets such as proof coins, silver proof coins, and uncirculated sets which can be purchased directly from the US Mint online. The proof and silver proof sets have been available since mid-summer, the uncirculated sets became available this month. These sets include all five state quarters as well as half dollar, dime, nickel, penny, Sacajawea dollar and the new presidential dollars. The run of coins mentioned in the Deseret News article are for general circulation and distribution to banks and will not be released officially until November.

CaptainK | 3:55 p.m. Oct. 16, 2007

Please people. It's Promontory, with an "o". Not Promentory. Those of us living in Utah should at least spell it right.

Grammar Police | 4:46 p.m. Oct. 16, 2007

Thank you Captain K. Whether we choose to bemoan or laud the spike on the quarter, let's at LEAST get the name of the place spelled right!!! It is Promontory...

SomeoneWhoKnows | 9:37 a.m. Oct. 17, 2007

To DCR's comment--I'm sorry to correct you, but all of the school children in the state were invited to submit drawings and ideas for the quarter. These were used as categories (not artwork) to submit to the Mint. The Mint uses their own artists and will not even accept any artwork from states for the quarters for many reasons. The fact that the drawing on the quarter is similar to what Mr. Price's class and Jenni came up with is a coincidence--or not--it's a piece of state history, and they were not the only ones with the idea. Certainly they can be proud that they took part in the process, but they cannot take credit for the design or even the original idea. As to inviting them to the Mint for the First Strike Ceremony, well, it's a moot point after reading my comments above; but, even the Quarter Commission who have spent many hours over the last couple years in the involvement of this process had to pay their own way if they wanted to be there.

Corneill | 6:03 p.m. Dec. 18, 2007

this is cool!

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