In the cradle of liberty, the rebirth of Liberty on the United States dime

With a color guard and a musket salute at the North Bridge, Liberty returned to the birthplace of U.S. independence — and to the face of the dime — on September 9.

“If you wonder what coins looked like back in the 1790s, when George Washington was president, [it’s] very similar to what you’re looking at right there,” U.S. Mint Director Paul Hollis told the crowd at Minute Man National Historical Park. “To have us revisit that, this is just such a wonderful coin.”

Hollis told The Acton Bridge that the historic site was chosen for the special showcase because it’s where Colonists mustered “the courage to do what’s necessary for freedom.”

Donna McIntosh, town communication manager, said in an email that given that the new dime “draws directly on themes of liberty, independence, and the founding era,” it was meaningful to celebrate it at Minute Man, “which plays such an important role in preserving and sharing that history with the public.”

The obverse (left) and reverse faces of the “Emerging Liberty” dime. 
Courtesy images

Small change 

At its first minting in 1796, the dime featured on its obverse face a figurative depiction of Liberty as a goddess, representing the founding ideals of the new republic. 

Though the designs of Liberty varied — sometimes wearing an olive-branch crown, sometimes a Phrygian cap, or both on occasion — she remained a fixture on the dime until 1946, when recently deceased President Franklin D. Roosevelt replaced her on the obverse in a design that has lasted to the present day.

As part of the national semiquincentennial celebrations of 2026, the U.S. Mint has temporarily updated the designs of circulating coins, including the first new dime design in 80 years. The “Emerging Liberty” edition of the dime will remain in production until year-end.

On the obverse face, Liberty wears a Phrygian cap patterned with the stars and stripes of the U.S. flag. On the reverse is an eagle in flight, clutching a bundle of arrows in its talons over the phrase “LIBERTY OVER TYRANNY.”

Hollis explained the eagle on the reverse, addressing the detail of its clutching arrows rather than the olive branch of peace often included in national symbolism, which was a point of controversy at the announcement of the new designs this year. 

Coin designer Eric Custer said, Hollis recounted, that at the time of the Revolutionary War, the participating Colonists “couldn’t even think about peace; it was not an option. … [In the interest of] ‘liberty over tyranny,’ the only option was war.”