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The Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005 provides a way to keep the First Spouse Program going when a president served without a spouse. Martin Van Buren is such a president. His wife Hannah died in 1819, after 12 years of marriage. Van Buren had been a widower for 18 years when he became president in 1837.
As the Act provides, the front of the First Spouse coin for Van Buren's presidency features an image of Liberty seated. This image was used on the dime made from 1837 to 1891, during his time in office.
The design on the back of this coin shows the young Martin Van Buren reading a book under a tree. Van Buren, born in New York in 1782, is the first president to be born in the United States after it became an independent nation.
His family ran a tavern in the mostly Dutch town of Kinderhook, located on the post road between New York City and Albany. Since the tavern hosted people traveling between the two cities, young Martin often heard people discuss political ideas. From an early age, he saw local and state politicians gather at the Van Buren establishment and talk about the issues of the day.