A friendly reminder that the discounted introductory prices for the Purple Heart Hall of Honor commemoratives will end this week on March 24th. The discount, which was $5 on the commemoratives that have been released, will end at 3:00 PM Eastern on Thursday. The exception to this is the colorized Purple Heart Hall of Honor silver dollar. It will not have a discounted price when it is released on Thursday.
The Purple Heart is awarded to any member of the U.S. Armed Forces who has been wounded or killed by enemy action. Since World War I, it has been awarded to an estimated 1.8 million servicemen and servicewomen.
The Purple Heart’s history reaches back to the American Revolution. In 1782, General George Washington gave orders establishing the Badge of Military Merit to honor merit among soldiers in the Continental Army. Washington stated that the award was to be a permanent one, but once the Revolution ended, it was all but forgotten until the 20th century. General John J. “Blackjack” Pershing suggested a need for a merit award in 1918, but it wasn’t until 1932 that the modern Purple Heart was created in recognition of Washington’s ideals and for the bicentennial of his birth.
On May 28, 1932, 136 World War I veterans were conferred their Purple Hearts at Temple Hill, in New Windsor, New York. Temple Hill was the site of the New Windsor Cantonment, which was the final encampment of the Continental Army in the winter of 1782-1783.
Originally the Purple Heart was awarded for merit. With the creation of the Legion of Merit in 1942, awarding the Purple Heart for merit was discontinued.
The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor opened in 2006 to share the stories of courage and sacrifice of Purple Heart recipients. It is located at the site of the New Windsor Cantonment.
United States Mint
Here is the pricing schedule as it stands today. These prices will all go up after 3:00 PM on Thursday.
- Colorized Silver Dollar (400,000) – $95.00 (Note, this product does not have an introductory discount and is still listed as TBD)
- $5 Gold Proof Coin (50,000) – $681.25
- Proof Half Dollar (750,000) – $35.00
- Proof Silver Dollar (400,000) – $74.00
- Three-Coin Proof Set (5,000 Product Limit) – $799.50
- $5 Gold Uncirculated Coin (50,000) – $671.25
- Uncirculated Half Dollar (750,000) – $33.00
- Uncirculated Silver Dollar (400,000) – $69.00
Coin prices include surcharges of $35 for each $5 gold coin, $10 for each silver dollar, and $5 for each clad half dollar. The Public Law authorizes the Mint to pay the surcharges to the National Purple Heart Honor Mission, Inc., to support its mission and for capital improvements to the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor facilities.