Description

2003 Arkansas State Quarters
Obverse Side
The obverse will continue to bear the familiar restored 1932 John Flannagan image of George Washington.
Reverse Side
Arkansas was acquired through the Louisiana Purchase and later became the Arkansas Territory before gaining statehood on June 15, 1836. It is fitting that the Natural State, Arkansas’s official nickname, chose images of natural resources. Arkansas has an abundance of clear streams, rivers, and lakes…in fact, more than 600,000 acres of natural lakes. Arkansas is also known for its sportsmanship and attracts mallard hunters from across the nation. Visitors to Arkansas can search Crater of Diamonds State Park for precious gems including, of course, diamonds. The mine at Crater of Diamonds State Park reportedly is the oldest diamond mine in North America, and the only one in the United States open to visitors, who get to keep what they find. Visitors can also experience Rice Fever the way W.H. Fuller did when he grew the first commercially successful rice crop in Arkansas. Soon after, Arkansas became the leading producer of rice in the United States.