BUFFALO, N.Y.—Mayor Brown today was joined by U.S. Mint Deputy Director Andrew Brunhart and representatives from M&T Bank to unveil the new Millard Fillmore dollar coin at a special ceremony in City Hall.
“This is a great honor to Millard Fillmore, as well as the City of Buffalo,” said Mayor Brown. “From his time spent in the New York State Assembly until his death in 1874, President Fillmore was a proud ambassador for Buffalo. And as a founding member of such institutions as the University at Buffalo, the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society, and M&T Bank, he played an integral part in building the very core of our city. I want to thank the U.S. Mint for recognizing his accomplishments and I look forward to seeing this coin enter circulation in the coming months.”
Each year, four new coins are struck featuring the nation’s former chief executives in the order in which they served as President. The coins all contain a portrait of the featured President on the obverse and an image of the Statue of Liberty on the reverse. The reverse was designed by United States Mint Sculptor-Engraver Don Everhart and also features the inscriptions "$1" and "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA." These coins will mark the thirteenth through the sixteenth coins to be issued in the series, which began in 2007 with George Washington.
"Each of the Presidential $1 coins is a tribute to the men who made tremendous personal sacrifices to lead our country," said United States Mint Director Ed Moy. "I hope this tribute continues to inspire a renewed sense of pride in our Nation’s rich history as we move into the fourth year of the Presidential $1 Coin Program."
On the edge of the coin are the inscriptions "E PLURIBUS UNUM," "2010," the mint mark and 13 stars. Along with the portrait on the obverse, the inscription of the President’s name, the years in which they served, a number showing the order in which they served along with "IN GOD WE TRUST" are also found.
After the ceremony, the U.S. Mint provided children with complimentary President Fillmore dollars, while the public was invited to participate in a dollar exchange for the new coins. The coin exchange was hosted by Buffalo’s own M&T Bank of which Millard Fillmore was a founding stockholder.
"The history of M&T Bank is intertwined with the City of Buffalo's history, and with Millard Fillmore’s history as well," said David P. Rutecki, administrative vice president for government banking at M&T Bank. "The Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company---now known as M&T Bank---officially opened for business on August 29, 1856 and declared its first dividend on January 1, 1857. Among the 145 stockholders listed as recipients of the 4 percent dividend was Millard Fillmore, who owned 10 shares valued at $500 and was paid a $20 dividend," said Rutecki. "Today, M&T is one of the 20 largest independent bank holding companies in the United States, with $69 billion in assets, more than 700 branches and 14,000 employees---and we’re proud to honor Millard Fillmore, one of our Founding Fathers."
The coins will be released in approximately three month intervals throughout 2010 in both circulation and collector versions.