Silver Five Ounces 2017 Frederick Douglass, Coin from United States - detailed information

This coin is part of the America the Beautiful silver bullion coins (abbreviated ATB) - a series of 56 silver bullion coins with a face value of a quarter dollar. The coins in the series contain 5oz (five troy ounces) of silver, making them the largest silver bullion coins issued to date by the United States Mint. The design of the coins duplicates exactly - though much enlarged - each of the America the Beautiful quarters. They were issued from 2010 to 2021.

All coins in the series feature a common obverse depicting George Washington in a restored version of the portrait created by John Flanagan for the 1932 Washington quarter, while the reverses feature five individual designs for each year of the program (one in 2021), each depicting a national park or national site - one from each state, federal district, and territory.

The Frederick Douglass National Historic Site quarter design is the second to be released in 2017 and the 37th overall in the America the Beautiful Quarters Program; it was released on 3 April 2017 and represents the Federal District of Columbia (D.C.).

The Frederick Douglass National Historic Site was established in 1962 to preserve the home and legacy of Frederick Douglass, abolitionist, civil rights advocate, author, and statesman. Douglass lived in this home from 1877 until his death in 1895. Frederick Douglass was born into slavery on a plantation on the Eastern Shore of Maryland in 1818. By fifteen, he was a literate, independent teenager who educated other slaves. In 1838, he disguised himself as a sailor and boarded a train to New York City, where he declared himself a free man.

Douglass turned his efforts to helping those still enslaved. An impressive orator, he travelled across the North speaking against slavery. He wrote his first autobiography in which he revealed his original name, his owner’s names, and his birthplace. In danger of being returned to slavery as a result of this revelation, he fled to the British Isles where he continued to speak against slavery and ultimately, British supporters purchased his freedom.

Douglass returned to the United States, and during the Civil War, recruited African Americans to fight in the Union Army. He continued to write and speak against slavery. He met with Abraham Lincoln to advocate for African American troops and encouraged Lincoln to see the war as a chance to transform the country. Following the Civil War, Douglass moved to his home in Washington, DC. He served as the U.S. Marshal for the District of Columbia, the District’s Recorder of Deeds, and the U.S. Minister to Haiti and Chargé d ‘Affaires to the Dominican Republic. He continued to work to expand civil rights in the country until his death.