The US Innovation Dollar Designs

Struck in the same golden-colored composition as Sacagawea, Native American and Presidential dollars, US Innovation dollars of 2018-date feature unique reverse designs honoring the innovators and innovations that helped shape our great nation. Inscriptions on the reverses include united states of america and (with the exception of the 2018 introductory coin) the name of the jurisdiction being honored.

The date, mint mark and motto e pluribus unum are inscribed upon the edge of all US Innovation dollars. The common obverse features a dramatic new image of the Statue of Liberty with the denomination stated as $1 and the inscription in god we trust. The usual legend liberty is omitted from the coins, as the image of the Statue of Liberty on the obverse was considered a sufficient representation of freedom.

Innovation Dollar obverse design

In 2018, a single design was released to introduce the series. Throughout the rest of the series, 2019-2032, four unique reverse designs are being issued per year. Just like the popular Statehood, D.C. and US Territories quarters of 1999-2009, the designs will be released in the order of statehood (the first 13 coins will be issued in the order that their states ratified the Constitution), followed by D.C. and the Territories.

2018

Introductory Coin

Depicts President George Washington's signature as it appeared on the first US patent, which was issued in 1790 to Samuel Hopkins for a process of making potash essential to agriculture and the textile industry.

2019

Delaware - Classifying the Stars

Honors Annie Jump Cannon, an internationally-known astronomer who invented a system for classifying the stars that's still in use today.

Pennsylvania - Polio Vaccine

Discovered in 1953 by a team at the University of Pittsburgh led by Dr. Jonas Salk. This groundbreaking vaccine virtually eliminated the devastating polio virus.

New Jersey - Light Bulb

Developed in the Menlo Park studio of Thomas Edison, this long-lasting light bulb held a carbonized cotton thread filament that could burn for 1,200 hours.

Georgia - Trustees' Garden

Established by James Oglethorpe in the 1730s, the 10-acre Trustees' Garden in Savannah, Georgia was dedicated to botany, agriculture and experimentation with semitropical products.

2020

Connecticut - Gerber Variable Scale

Designed by Connecticut native Joseph Gerber, the Gerber Variable Scale was used to give proportional measurements by replotting curves and resizing objects.

Massachusetts - Telephone

Invented in Alexander Graham Bell’s Boston workshop, the telephone revolutionized communication. The world’s first telephone call was made by Bell on March 10, 1876 to his assistant using the words, “Mr. Watson, come here. I want to see you.”

Maryland - Hubble Space Telescope

Launched into orbit in 1990, the Hubble Telescope continues to help expand NASA’s working knowledge of the universe by transmitting images of planets, stars, black holes, and more back to Earth.

South Carolina - Septima Clark

Born May 3, 1898 in Charleston, Septima was a vocal advocate of the Civil Rights Movement. She worked to create dedicated spaces geared towards educating marginalized groups.

2021

New Hampshire - Home Video Game System

In 1967, Ralph Baer designed the “Brown Box” which functioned as a multi-player, multi-program home gaming system. Outfitted with games like ping-pong and checkers, this system would become the first of its kind.

Virginia - Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel

Considered a wonder of the engineering world, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel spans more than 17 miles from Southeastern Virginia to the Delmarva Peninsula.

New York - Erie Canal

Built in 1825, this man-made waterway spanning 363 miles connected the Hudson River to Lake Erie. By creating the canal, New York City became a trade hub between the eastern and western portions of the country.

North Carolina - First Public University

Looking to bring education to the public, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill opened as the nation’s first public university in 1795.

2022

Rhode Island - Reliance Yacht Naval Innovation

Honoring the Reliance yacht which was built by Nathanael Herreshoff, a naval architect. Built using nickel steel, Tobin Bronze and aluminum, Herreshoff’s yacht would defend America’s Cup in 1903.

Vermont - Snowboarding

Highlighting the “melon grab”, a trick where the rider holds the edge of the board, Vermont’s dollar celebrates snowboarding.

Kentucky - Bluegrass Music

Originating from the Appalachian region, this dollar celebrates the unique mix of English, Scottish and Irish music combined with African American blues and jazz that created bluegrass music.

Tennessee - Tennessee Valley Authority and Rural Electrification

Formed in 1933 by Congress, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) was created to expand transmission lines to rural areas of the state that were unable to receive electricity without exorbitant rates.

2023

Ohio - Underground Railroad

The Underground Railroad ran through Ohio, a crucial stepping stone along the way to freedom. Enslaved people looking to make their way to North were provided with safe houses along the route in the Buckeye State.

Louisiana - Higgins Boat

Deployed during the Battles of Normandy and Iowa Jima, Louisiana’s Higgins Boat allowed the Allied Forces to transport soldiers and armed vehicles to the shores of WWII’s biggest battles.

Indiana - Automobile Industry

Celebrates the advancement in the American automobile industry with images representing an early gas automobile, classic car production and an Indy race car.

Mississippi - First Human Lung Transplant

Performed for the first time at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in 1963, the procedure paved the way for medical advancements in lung disease.

2024

Illinois - Steel Plow

Unlike the soft sandy soil of the East Coast, the prairie lands of America’s heartland were harder to farm. Invented by an Illinois blacksmith, the steel plow was originally fashioned from a sawmill blade and was able to cut through the dense earth.

Alabama - Saturn V Rocket

The most powerful rocket of its day, the Saturn V helped the U.S. lead the way into space exploration. Launched for the first time by NASA in 1967, this rocket would take man to the Moon in July 1969.

Maine - Direct Current Defibrillator

Developed by Dr. Bernard Lown, the direct current defibrillator changes the patient’s heart rhythm by using a pulse of energy. Today, the DC defibrillator is still used internationally to save lives.

Missouri - Dr. George Washington Carver

Honors renowned agricultural scientist, Dr. George Washington Carver. Looking to reintroduce nutrients into the over farmed soil of the South, Carver was a staunch advocate of the peanut.

2025

Arkansas - Raye Montague

Leading the way as the first female naval engineer for the U.S. Navy, Raye accomplished the impossible. Not only did she become the first person to draft a ship using a computer but she did it in under 19 hours.

Florida - Space Shuttle Program

Based out of the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, the United States made history as the first country to put man on the Moon.

Michigan - Auto Assembly Line

Designed by Ransom Olds, the automobile assembly line created a more efficient way to produce vehicles. This allowed the finished product to become more accessible to the public.

Texas - Mission Control

Responsible for monitoring aircraft and acting as the communication hub for astronauts onboard the International Space Station, NASA’s mission control is located at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.