Released on January 2 2003 this is the 21st coin released in the 50 State Quarters Program and the first released in 2003. Illinois admitted into the Union on December 3 1818 themed the coin The Land of Lincoln. It highlights an image of a young Abraham Lincoln within an outline of the state a farm scene and the Chicago skyline on the left and the right of the states outline. There are twenty-one stars bordering the coin which signify Illinois as the 21st state admitted into the Union. Launched in 1999 the United States Mint s 50 State Quarters Program was a 10-year initiative that honored each of the nation s states in the order that they ratified the Constitution or were admitted into the Union. Each quarter was produced for about 10 weeks and will never be produced again. State designs are displayed on the reverse (tails) of the quarters while the obverse design displays the familiar image of George Washington. But to accommodate state designs on the reverse the words United States of America Quarter Dollar Liberty and In God We Trust all appear on the obverse. Illinois is a midwestern state bordering Indiana in the east and the Mississippi River in the west. Nicknamed "the Prairie State" its marked by farmland forests rolling hills and wetlands. Chicago one of the largest cities in the U.S is in the northeast on the shores of Lake Michigan. It s famous for its skyscrapers such as sleek 1451-ft. Willis Tower and the neo-Gothic Tribune Tower.