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2009 25C S CLAD - DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA - PF 70 - (BROWN LABEL)
The District of Columbia quarter is the first of 2009 and the first in the District of Columbia and U.S. Territories Quarters Program. The District of Columbia, created in 1790, became the Nation's capital on December 1, 1800. The 10-square-mile site, originally part of Maryland and Virginia, was chosen personally by President George Washington to fulfill the need for a new Federal district that would not be part of any state. The District of Columbia quarter reverse features native son Duke Ellington, the internationally renowned composer and musician, seated at a grand piano with the inscriptions, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, DUKE ELLINGTON and JUSTICE FOR ALL, the District's motto.
The District of Columbia Quarter Design Advisory Committee, established by Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, solicited and reviewed reverse design narratives from the public, narrowing more than 300 down to three, which were sent to the United States Mint for artistic renderings. The three narratives each included an individual from a different century: Duke Ellington; Benjamin Banneker, who assisted with the original D.C. boundary survey; and Frederick Douglass, the renowned abolitionist and statesman. The artistic renderings were then proposed to the District, and the Duke Ellington design was recommended through a public vote, with the Secretary of the Treasury approving the design on July 31, 2008.