Susan B Anthony Coin

For decades, suffrage was a privilege for only a chosen few. But on the 15th of February, 1820, the course of history was about to change. This was the birth of Susan B. Anthony – the woman who would give American women their own voice in history and inpire the creation of the Susan B Anthony Coin.

Principles and Profession
Susan Brownell Anthony was not your ordinary Massachusetts lass. While she was never allowed to amuse herself with educational nor whimsical toys, she developed an early sense of literacy at the young age of three. Her upbringing made her develop a well-rounded moral ground and an inimitable principle in many aspects. She imbibed the principles that her parents had – acceptance of change and stringency in fighting for equality.

Struggling for equitable teaching wages, regardless of gender, was her first battle for parity between men and women. Unfortunately, after 12 years of trying to change the chauvinistic structure that infested the wages and the teaching system, Susan Anthony left the practice with the same meager pay. In 1849, at the age of 29, she retired from her cherished profession and begun the fight for social and political reform.

The Big Shift
When Anthony left teaching, her ideals had a more fervent shift. In 1950, her yearning for change was further ignited by reading detailed excerpts of Lucy Stone’s speech in The New York Tribune. Stone’s speech addressed women’s rights and her message was clearly conveyed to Anthony. In 1951, Anthony met a fellow feminist, Elizabeth Stanton. From being the self-conscious speaker that she was, Anthony became one of the most eloquent speakers of her time. She and Stanton travelled around the country to deliver speeches with the inherent purpose of influencing every state into treating men and women equally. While her main advocacy was geared towards women’s rights, her causes also addressed slavery, alcohol abuse, and, African-American racism.

Suffrage
After “illegally” casting her first ballot in 1872, Anthony stood by the argument that the 14th Amendment has already granted all Americans, regardless of gender, the right to vote in the federal elections, and refused to pay her 100-dollar fine. In 1869, she and Stanton co-founded the National Woman’s Suffrage Association, and in 1890, she decided to merge with Lucy Stone and they founded a broader suffragist group called American Women’s Suffrage Association. Along with her efforts to travel the country and spread her advocacy for women’s equal political and social rights, she also propagated a publication called The Revolution. The paper was centered on the motto “Men, their rights and nothing more. Women, their rights, and nothing less.” For the remaining years of her life, Susan served the Federal Suffrage Amendment. On August 18,1920, fourteen years after her death in 1906, women were finally granted the political right o vote through the ratification of the 19th Constitutional Amendment.

A Lasting Legacy
The historical heritage bestowed by Susan B. Anthony has been widely recognized as one of the most esteemed legacies left by a female figure. Everything that she did to fight for gender equality in the United States and in Europe has paved the way for a renewed social perspective. In 1979, the Susan B Anthony Coin was released for circulation. It was the first time that a non-allegorical female figure was placed on a one dollar coin.

Today, collectors are angling for the Susie coins released in 1979 and 1981. Coins from both years boast Type I and Type II varieties of rare S mint marks. The 1981 coins were never released for commercial distribution but are available in uncirculated mint and proof sets. Regardless of the fact that the Susan B Anthony Coin was only in circulation for roughly four years (1979, 1980, 1981, 1999), these coins embody more than just monetary value. They are just few of the tangible pieces that will remind Americans that there was once a woman who challenged the inequitable status quo, and stood up against a system that refused to recognize women beyond gender. Every coin will forever serve as the quintessential representation of Susan’s legacy in making America a democratic and impartial nation.