The Illinois Quarter is the first of the 50 States Commemorative Quarters released by the U.S. Mint and 21st of the year 2003.

According to the U.S. Mint’s official website, the Illinois quarter design depicts a young Abraham Lincoln within the outline of the state. A farm scene and the Chicago skyline appear on the left and to the right of the state’s outline.

Twenty-one stars border the coin, signifying Illinois as the 21st state to be admitted into the Union on December 3, 1818.

“The Prairie State,” also commonly known as the “Land of Lincoln,” pays tribute to our nation’s 16th president. The young Lincoln lived and practiced law in Springfield before becoming one of our nation’s greatest leaders. President Lincoln’s historic home, burial site and new presidential library are all located in the Springfield area.

The Alabama Quarter is the second of the 50 States Commemorative Quarters released by the U.S. Mint in the year 2003, and the 22nd of the entire series.

According to the U.S. Mint’s official website, Alabama became the 22nd state to be admitted into the Union on December 14, 1819. The Alabama quarter design features an image of Helen Keller with her name in English, and in a reduced–size version of braille.

The Alabama quarter is the first U.S. circulating coin to feature braille. An Alabama long leaf pine branch and magnolias grace the sides of the design, and a “Spirit of Courage” banner underlines the central image.

Maine State Quarter The Maine Quarter is the third of the 50 States Commemorative Quarters released by the U.S. Mint in the year 2003, and the 23rd of the entire series.

According to the U.S. Mint’s official website, the Maine quarter design incorporates a rendition of the Pemaquid Point Light atop a granite coast and of a schooner at sea.

Pemaquid Point Light is located in New Harbor, and marks the entrance to Muscongus Bay and Johns Bay. Since the beginning of ship activity in the area, a shoal created hazardous navigation conditions, causing many shipwrecks. As maritime trade increased in the area, so did the need for a lighthouse.

In 1826, Congress appropriated funds to build a lighthouse at Pemaquid Point. Although the original building was replaced in 1835, and the original 10 lamps in 1856, the light is still a beacon for ships and remains one of Maine’s most popular tourist attractions.

The schooner resembles “Victory Chimes,” the last three–masted schooner of the Windjammer Fleet. “Victory Chimes” has become synonymous with Maine windjamming.

The Missouri Quarter is the fourth of the 50 States Commemorative Quarters released by the U.S. Mint in the year 2003, and the 24th of the entire series.

According to the U.S. Mint’s official website, the Missouri quarter depicts Lewis and Clark’s historic return to St. Louis down the Missouri River, with the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial (Gateway Arch) in the background. The quarter is inscribed “Corps of Discovery 1804–2004.”

While much of the state’s history is tied to the mighty rivers that flow through it, the “Show Me State” got its nickname because of the devotion of its people to simple common sense. In 1899, Rep. Willard D. Vandiver said, “Frothy eloquence neither convinces nor satisfies me. I’m from Missouri. You’ve got to show me.” It is easy to imagine President Thomas Jefferson saying “show me” as he sent Lewis and Clark forth on their 1,500-mile trek into the uncharted Louisiana Purchase territory.

Their 1,500-mile journey westward and back, which some claim was the greatest U.S. military expedition ever, began in St. Charles, Missouri – just 20 miles west of St. Louis – in 1804 and ended when they returned to St. Louis, Missouri in 1806.

The Arkansas Quarter is the last of the 50 States Commemorative Quarters released by the U.S. Mint in the year 2003, and the 25th of the entire series.

According to the U.S. Mint’s official website, the Arkansas quarter was acquired through the Louisiana Purchase and later became the Arkansas Territory before gaining statehood. The Arkansas quarter design bears the image of rice stalks, a diamond and a mallard gracefully flying above a lake.

It is fitting that the “Natural State,” Arkansas’s official nickname, chose images of natural resources. Arkansas has an abundance of clear streams, rivers and lakes. In fact, Arkansas has more than 600,000 acres of natural lakes. Arkansas is also known for its sportsmanship and boasts mallard hunting as a main attraction for hunters across the nation.

Visitors to Arkansas can search Crater of Diamonds State Park for precious gems including, of course, diamonds. The mine at Crater of Diamonds State Park reportedly is the oldest diamond mine in North America, and the only one in the United States open to the public-visitors get to keep what they find. Visitors can also experience “Rice Fever” in Arkansas-just the way W.H. Fuller did when he grew the first commercially successful rice crop in Arkansas. Soon after, thousands of acres of the Grand Prairie were changed to cultivate rice, and Arkansas became the leading producer of the grain in the United States.