For those of you who are coin collectors or who have a fascination with our seventeenth president, I’m here to tell you that today is the day that the Andrew Johnson $1 coin is available for purchase … in rolls of $25, and for a bit more than that, of course.
Here is the thumbnail biography of the Tennessee tailor:
Born in Raleigh, N.C., in 1808, Andrew Johnson grew up in poverty. He was apprenticed to a tailor as a boy and later opened a tailor shop in Greeneville, Tenn., married Eliza McCardle and participated in debates at the local academy.
In 1864, the Republican Party nominated Johnson, a Democrat, for vice president. After President Abraham Lincoln’s death, President Johnson proceeded with a moderate approach to reconstruct the southern states.
In 1874, Tennessee returned Johnson to the Senate, making him the only former President to have served in the Senate. He died a few months later on July 31, 1875.
Talk about selective memory. And a “moderate” approach to reconstruction? Please tell me how more lenient Johnson could have been … to whites, that is.
And there’s a word missing here … begins with the letter “I” … wait, don’t tell me … nah, not idiot (good guess!) … nor imbecile …
Just wait for the next release, I guess.
I was going to hold out for the Grover Cleveland coins. Are those out yet?
As noted in the article you linked to, they officially introduced the coin at Andrew Johnson NHS.
http://www.nps.gov/anjo/parknews/newsreleases.htm
The mint has expressed interest in introducing the Grant coin at Grant NHS, I think sometime in May.
Few seem to remember that Johnson was the only senator from a secessionist state who remained loyal.
Johnson’s staunch unionism should not be overlooked. It surely impressed Lincoln. It certainly contributed a great deal to his wartime career, first as military governor and later as vice president. It also shows one could be a devoted unionist and a rather committed racist.