US Gold Coins Letitia Tyler First Spouse $10 Dollars Gold Coin
First Lady of the United States, 1841–1842
The obverse of the Letitia Tyler First Spouse Coin carries her portrait as designed and sculpted by Phebe Hemphill. Inscriptions include “Letitia Tyler”, “In God We Trust”, “Liberty”, the order of the Presidency “10th”, the years she served as First Lady “1841-1842″, and the date and mint mark “2009 W”.
Letitia Christian Tyler (November 12, 1790 – September 10, 1842), first wife of John Tyler, was First Lady of the United States from 1841 until her death.
After briefly serving as the Second Lady of the United States, Letitia Tyler became the First Lady from 1841 to 1842 after her husband John Tyler assumed the Presidency. Letitia Tyler would pass away on September 10, 1842 at the age of 51, making her the youngest First Lady to die. Her husband remarried in 1844 while he was still President, resulting in a separate coin issued for his second wife Julia Tyler.
A genteel Southern lady, Letitia Christian Tyler was content to stay in the background tending to her children and household. She supervised the Tyler family's 1,200 acre plantation, Greenway, in Charles City County, Virginia, for many years.
Although Letitia Tyler was never able to assume the normal social duties of a First Lady because of her poor health, behind the scenes, she directed the entertaining and household management of the White House. She made only one public appearance while First Lady, at the wedding of their daughter, Elizabeth. She informally received important visitors, including authors Charles Dickens and Washington Irving, and enjoyed discussing current events with them. She died in September 1842, eight months after her daughter's wedding.
The reverse of the coin depicts Mrs. Tyler and her two oldest children behind their Cedar Grove Plantation, with the plantation building and fields visible in the distance. She successfully ran the 1,200 acre plantation, allowing her husband to focus on his political career. The reverse inscriptions include “Cedar Grove Plantation”, “United States of America”, “E Pluribus Unum”, the denomination “$10″, and the gold content and purity “1/2 oz. .9999 Fine Gold”. This side of the coin was designed by Susan Gamble and sculpted by Norman E. Nemeth.
Coin Specifications and Mintages
Date: 2009
Mint: West Point (W)
Mintage: 5,296 (proof), 3,240 (uncirculated)
Designers: Phebe Hemphill (obverse), Susan Gamble (reverse)
Composition: 0.9999 Gold
Weight: 0.5000 troy oz. (15.554 g)
Diameter: 1.041 inches (26.49 mm)
Thickness: 0.074 inches (1.88 mm)
The Letitia Tyler First Spouse Gold Coin represented the tenth overall release of the series and the second of five coins to be released during the year. It was also one of two different First Spouse coins to be issued for the 10th Presidency.
The United States Mint offered the Letitia Tyler Coins for sale starting on July 2, 2009. Proof and uncirculated finishes were available, with a maximum mintage of 40,000 established across both options. This was the same maximum used for each release of the series so far, despite the dramatically reduced sales of recent issues. Initial pricing for the coins was $629.00 and $614.00 for the proof and uncirculated versions, respectively.
The coins remained available for sale until June 3, 2010. During the period of availability, the US Mint price was changed on several occasions to reflect changes in the market price of gold. After the eleven months of availability, the final mintages reached 5,296 proof coins and 3,240 uncirculated coins.
US Gold Coins
First Spouse Gold Coins Program
2007 First Spouse Gold Coins
2008 First Spouse Gold Coins
2009 First Spouse Gold Coins
Anna Harrison Letitia Tyler Julia Tyler Sarah Polk Margaret Taylor
2010 First Spouse Gold Coins
2011 First Spouse Gold Coins
2012 First Spouse Gold Coins
2013 First Spouse Gold Coins
2014 First Spouse Gold Coins
2015 First Spouse Gold Coins