The student news site of Marquette University

Marquette Wire

The student news site of Marquette University

Marquette Wire

The student news site of Marquette University

Marquette Wire

Wisconsin quarter gets cheesy

The design soundly defeated the two other finalists. A scene depicting a trapper and a Native American in conversation on a riverbank meant to evoke the state’s early exploration came in second. A panorama of a deer in a meadow, meant to call to mind the state’s scenic nature, came in third.

All designs included the word “Wisconsin” and the year of its statehood arched over the top of the design, as well as the Wisconsin motto.

People across the state, from professional artists to schoolchildren, contributed prospective quarter designs to the Wisconsin Commemorative

Quarter Advisory Council, said Rueben K. Harpole, a member of WCQAC.

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The WCQAC is a cross-section of citizens from all over the state, according to Harpole. The council had representatives from major cities like

Milwaukee and Madison as well as representatives from smaller towns like Iola and Wauwautosa. Council members included representatives from the

black, Native American and Hispanic communities, Harpole said.

Gov. Jim Doyle had the final say in the design and chose the agriculature design Tuesday.

Harpole and the other WCQAC members had to sit and look at 9,000 entries from all over the state and consider each one’s artistic merit, originality and representation of the state. The process took almost six months, Harpole said.

Out of 9,663 submissions, the council chose 20 designs they felt best represented Wisconsin and sent them to the U.S. Mint in Denver, where the designs’ technical feasibility was assessed. The Mint then recommended its top three designs, which were sent back to the council.

The designs were then posted on the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions Web site, where people could view the designs and vote for their favorite. The agriculture design received 137,745 votes, 28,838 more votes than the exploration design’s 112,907. The scenic design received 97,010 votes.

Marquette students appear to favor the winning design.

“I like the agriculture design best because being from out of state, it’s the agricultural aspect of Wisconsin I most associate with, so to me it makes the most sense,” said freshman Liz Toohey, who’s from Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Other students associate Wisconsin with agricultural pictures.

“When you think of Wisconsin, you generally think of cheese and dairy cows, so I’d go with the agriculture one,” said sophomore Tom Dolce of Bloomingdale, Ill.

The state quarters were introduced in January 1999 as a way to educate people about the distinct cultures of each state, said Beatrice Soper, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Mint.

“The mint unveiled these quarters so people would know more about each state’s different culture,” Soper said. Mint officials also hoped the quarters would breathe new life into the hobby of numismatics, or coin collecting. In that aspect, the quarters have succeeded.

“There is a huge demand for the commemorative quarters,” said Robert Krueger, owner of Bob’s OK Coins, 3058 S. 13th St., an American Numismatic Association Member coin collector’s shop in Milwaukee. “They’ve brought excitement to coin collecting.”

Krueger anticipates the demand for the Wisconsin state quarter to be especially high. Krueger cites the example of New York, which ran out of its commemorative quarter despite ordering an extra-large batch and had to reorder more because so many people saved their quarters.

“Wisconsin will be no exception,” Krueger said. “Even non-collectors will want to save the Wisconsin quarters. It’s more dear to their heart.”