Coins - 2001 Mint Set

The 2001 mint set held 20 uncirculated coins - penny, nickel, dime, half dollar, dollar and five state quarters with one of each from the Denver and Philadelphia mints.

The 2001 mint set included the third year of the US Mint's state quarters program and the second year of the new Sacagawea golden dollar coin.   

The 2001 mint set included two envelopes, a red one for the coins minted in Denver and a blue one for the Philadelphia minted coins. Within each envelope, two Mylar sleeves held the coins. One sleeve held the five state quarters while the other held the penny, nickel, dime, half dollar and dollar uncirculated coins.

For the 2001 mint set, the US Mint placed images of the mint buildings on the front of each envelope - Denver on the red Denver envelope and Philadelphia on the blue Philadelphia envelope.

In addition, the front of each envelope included "2001 United States Mint,"  "Uncirculated Coin Set" and images of the ten coins. The Treasury Department seal for the US Mint and their logo for the 50 State Quarter program were placed on the lower left of the envelope, the US Mint's web site address in the middle and the mint city on the lower right. 

2001 Mint Set Package

The backs of the envelopes in the 2001 mint set reflected the colors associated with each mint - red for Denver and blue for Philadelphia - and included the US Mint's web site address on the flap of the envelope.

The contents of each envelope in the 2001 mint set remained consistent except for the designs. Two Mylar sleeves held the coins, an insert provided information about the coins, and an inserted card made it easy to order more sets.

From the top left in the picture below, the Denver portion of the 2001 mint set included the US Mint's red card describing the Denver uncirculated coins, the red envelope, the red re-order card, the regular uncirculated coins in the red-edged Mylar and the state quarter uncirculated coins in the black-edged Mylar.

Similarly, from the top right, the Philadelphia portion of the 2001 mint set contained blue versions of the materials with the regular uncirculated coins in blue-edged Mylar and the uncirculated state quarters in the white-edged Mylar. 

2001 Mint Set Uncirculated Coins

From the obverse (heads) view, the two Mylar sleeves in the 2001 mint set for the Denver minted coins include the red-edge for the penny, nickel, dime, half dollar and dollar uncirculated coins. The black-edged Mylar sleeve contained the third five of the uncirculated state quarters.

On the right, the dark blue-edged Mylar held the dollar, half dollar, nickel, penny and dime uncirculated coins from the Philadelphia mint. The white-edged sleeve contained the five uncirculated, Philadelphia-minted state quarters.

The separately sealed spaces in each Mylar sleeve protect the uncirculated coins from each other and from fingerprints. Each space, larger than the coin it holds, allows the uncirculated coins to move freely while protected.

From the back, the reverse images of the uncirculated coins can be seen through their clear Mylar protection. The Denver uncirculated coins are on the left with the Philadelphia minted coins on the right.

2001 Mint Set Insert and Certificate of Authenticity

Each 2001 mint set envelope contained informational inserts. The designs are similar except for the red and blue colors and the background images for each mint. The front of the inserts reflect the same design as the front of the envelopes.

The red-toned insert belongs to the Denver minted coins with the blue to the Philadelphia uncirculated coins.

Except for the colors and the mention of Denver or Philadelphia, the inside of the inserts in the 2001 mint set are the same. The inserts discuss the coins included in the set and describe the third year of the 50 state quarters program. The coin specifications for the state quarters show on the inside.

Denver's insert includes a red font while the Philadelphia was printed in blue.

The back of the two inserts in the 2001 mint set shows the coin specifications of the cent, nickel, dime, half dollar and dollar uncirculated coins. 

The back of both inserts continue with the corresponding red or blue ink.

In the 2001 mint set, the US Mint continued with their practice of adding a separate card for ordering additional sets easily. The red and blue envelopes held the red and blue cards respectively. (Note: the cards are no longer valid, but they help cushion the coins in each envelope.)

The opposite side of the reorder form suggests the collector order more mint sets for friends and family and includes the instructions for completing and sending the order to obtain more of the 2001 mint sets.

Larger images of the 2001 mint set inserts show the contents of the inserts and the coin specifications with more detail.

2001 Mint Set Coins and Metals

The coins of the 2001 Mint Set contained the following metals:

Penny: copper-plated zinc, 2.5% copper; 97.5% zinc
Nickel: 25% nickel; 75% copper
Dime: 91.67% copper; 8.33% nickel
Quarter: 91.67% copper; 8.33% nickel
Half Dollar: 91.67% copper; 8.33% nickel
Dollar: manganese-brass clad, 88.5% copper, 6% zinc, 3.5% manganese, 2% nickel

Click on Mint Set Population to view the contents of the sets through the years. Take a look at the overall Mint Set page to see how the mint set values compare among the sets across the years.

2001 Mint Set Year - News about Coins and the US Mint

(note: the below links to newspapers open in a new window)

New $1 coin stays in dollar bill's shadow 
The Southeast Missourian - January 9, 2001
Americans aren't taking to the new dollar coin as well as US Mint official had hoped. Area banks report they seldom get a request for dollar coins. About the only place the coins are used is the Post Office.

Gold Sacagawea Coin a Flop
Lakeland Ledger - January 28, 2001
Banks say no one asks for them. Stores say consumers don't want them. One year after its introduction, the US Mint's most ambitious effort to launch a metal version of the paper dollar is a flop, but not as much of one as the Susan B. Anthony dollar before it.

Safeway beginning to use dollar coin
Eugene Register-Guard - February 7, 2001
Safeway, the third largest US supermarket chain, will begin distributing the golden dollar coins as change in its stores this week.

Mint: Dollar coin should be spent 
The Victoria Advocate - February 16, 2001
The US Mint employees, who manufacture the golden dollar coins by the millions, hoard the coins in their dressers, desks or piggy banks - just like ordinary citizens do. The Mint produced over 1 billion of the coins in the last two years, but people don't use them in daily transactions. The Mint continues its plea for people to use the golden dollar coins.

Sculptor: Mint gave me special coins 
Sun Journal - February 19, 2001
The US Mint gave Glenna Goodacre, the sculptor for the Sacagawea dollar, 5000 of the golden coins. Some believe the coins were treated differently by the US Mint. The Mint claims the coins are simply uncirculated coins. Regardless, the sculptor chose to sell half of the coins for $200 each. People bought the 2500 coins quickly, and some found their way onto eBay for a much higher price.

US Mint strikes new American Buffalo silver dollar 
Daily News - May 5, 2001
American Indian leaders offered a prayer in the Ute language and smoked a peace pipe to celebrate the new American Buffalo silver dollar production begun at the US Mint. Sales of the dollar will contribute funds to the National Museum of the American Indian planned to open in 2004.

Astronaut on state's proposed quarter is from New Jersey 
Toledo Blade - May 13, 2001
The astronaut depicted on the latest proposed version of the Ohio commemorative quarter is based on the photograph of someone without ties to the state. But, the photograph was taken by Ohio astronaut Neil Armstrong. Some argued the image represented Buzz Aldrin from New Jersey. Others claimed the image for the quarter symbolized a generic astronaut.

Report: Mint workers squirreling away coins 
Bangor Daily News - May 18, 2001
Mint officials confirmed that newly made coins were found hidden in mint employees' lockers and toolboxes. The Mint's spokesman said that the items found during an April security sweep will require further investigation.

Businesswoman tapped to be US Mint director 
Bangor Daily News - May 30, 2001
The administration announced Tuesday the intent to nominate businesswoman Henrietta Holsman Fore as director of the US Mint.

Shredded money can be retrieved 
The Daily Gazette - June 4, 2001
The US Mint replaces damaged coins. The Bureau of Engraving and Printing replaces badly damaged even unrecognizable to the human eye currency. They've replaced money that would otherwise be thrown away as ashes, some from a cow's stomach, and even some found in the business end of an outhouse.

Coin surplus costs employees of the US Mint their jobs
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - November 22, 2001
A surplus of coins, due in part to people emptying their change jars in the softening economy, prompted the US Mint to begin layoffs. Expecting a significant decreased in coinage requirements, the US Mint layed off about 12% of its workforce.

The 2001 Mint Set Year news included the lack of acceptance of the new Sacagawea golden dollar coin, issues with the state quarter images and the introduction of a new American Buffalo coin.