I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1388 
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins to honor and 
memorialize the tragedy of the Sultana steamboat explosion of 1865. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 7, 2023 
Mr. CRAWFORD (for himself, Mr. TURNER, Mr. WEBER of Texas, Mr. SES-
SIONS, Mr. WITTMAN, Mr. SMITH of Missouri, Mr. LAHOOD, Mr. CLOUD, 
Mr. THOMPSON of California, Mrs. LESKO, Mr. WOMACK, Mr. HERN, Mr. 
PFLUGER, Mr. BALDERSON, Ms. DE LA CRUZ, Mr. BOST, Mr. ZINKE, 
Mr. MOORE of Alabama, Mr. BABIN, Mr. DIAZ-BALART, Mr. KELLY of 
Pennsylvania, Mr. CARTER of Georgia, Mr. JACKSON of Texas, Mr. 
JOHNSON
of 
Louisiana, 
Mr. 
WESTERMAN, 
Mr. 
MANN, 
Mr. 
FLEISCHMANN, Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. JOHNSON of South 
Dakota, Mr. TONY GONZALES of Texas, Mr. NEHLS, Mr. SCHWEIKERT, 
Mr. EMMER, Mr. HILL, Mr. HARRIS, Mr. FERGUSON, Mr. VAN ORDEN, 
Mr. KELLY of Mississippi, Mr. ROGERS of Alabama, Mr. BURCHETT, Mr. 
GRAVES of Missouri, and Mr. COHEN) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Financial Services 
A BILL 
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins 
to honor and memorialize the tragedy of the Sultana 
steamboat explosion of 1865. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Sultana Steamboat 
Disaster Commemorative Coin Act of 2023’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) On April 27, 1865, the Sultana, a Mis-
sissippi River paddlewheel steamboat, exploded kill-
ing nearly 1,200 of the 2,137 passengers and crew 
on board. Based on the number of recorded casual-
ties, this event is the worst maritime disaster in 
United States history. 
(2) Those aboard the boat were mostly paroled 
Union soldiers recently released from the Confed-
erate prisoner-of-war camps in Cahaba, Alabama, 
and Andersonville, Georgia. These men largely 
hailed from Ohio, Tennessee, Indiana, Michigan, 
Kentucky, and West Virginia. 
(3) The Sultana disaster was overshadowed by 
other major events surrounding the end of the 
American Civil War, including the assassination of 
President Abraham Lincoln on April 15, 1865, and 
subsequently, the killing of President Lincoln’s as-
sassin, John Wilkes Booth, on April 26, 1865, just 
1 day before the Sultana disaster. 
(4) The Sultana Historical Preservation Society 
now operates the Sultana Disaster Museum in Mar-
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ion, Arkansas, with artifacts, stories, and exhibits 
that tell this story. Plans and fundraising are pro-
gressing for a much larger facility that can better 
acquire and preserve the Sultana history. 
SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS. 
(a) DENOMINATIONS.—In recognition and remem-
brance of the tragedy of the Sultana steamboat explosion 
of 1865, which is the greatest maritime disaster in United 
States history, the Secretary of the Treasury (hereinafter 
in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall mint and 
issue the following coins: 
(1) $5 GOLD COINS.—Not more than 100,000 
$5 coins, which shall— 
(A) weigh 8.359 grams; 
(B) have a diameter of 0.850 inches; and 
(C) contain not less than 90 percent gold. 
(2) $1 SILVER COINS.—Not more than 500,000 
$1 coins, which shall— 
(A) weigh 26.73 grams; 
(B) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and 
(C) contain not less than 90 percent silver. 
(3) HALF-DOLLAR
CLAD
COINS.—Not more 
than 750,000 half-dollar coins which shall— 
(A) weigh 11.34 grams; 
(B) have a diameter of 1.205 inches; and 
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(C) be minted to the specifications for half- 
dollar coins contained in section 5112(b) of title 
31, United States Code. 
(b) LEGAL TENDER.—The coins minted under this 
Act shall be legal tender, as provided in section 5103 of 
title 31, United States Code. 
(c) NUMISMATIC ITEMS.—For purposes of sections 
5134 and 5136 of title 31, United States Code, all coins 
minted under this Act shall be considered to be numis-
matic items. 
SEC. 4. DESIGNS OF COIN. 
(a) DESIGN REQUIREMENTS.—The designs of the 
coins minted under this Act shall be emblematic of the 
historical significance of the Sultana disaster and the sac-
rifice of the many people of the United States who died 
and survived on April 27, 1865. 
(b) DESIGNATION AND INSCRIPTIONS.—On each coin 
minted under this Act, there shall be— 
(1) a designation of the value of the coin; 
(2) an inscription of the year ‘‘2023’’; and 
(3) inscriptions of the words ‘‘Liberty’’, ‘‘In 
God We Trust’’, ‘‘United States of America’’, and 
‘‘E Pluribus Unum’’. 
(c) SELECTION.—The designs for the coins minted 
under this Act shall be— 
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(1) selected by the Secretary after consultation 
with the Commission of Fine Arts; and 
(2) reviewed by the Citizens Coinage Advisory 
Committee. 
SEC. 5. ISSUANCE OF COINS. 
(a) QUALITY OF COINS.—Coins minted under this 
Act shall be issued in uncirculated and proof qualities. 
(b) PERIOD OF ISSUANCE.—The Secretary may issue 
coins minted under this Act only during the 1-year period 
beginning on January 1, 2023. 
SEC. 6. SALE OF COINS. 
(a) SALE PRICE.—The coins issued under this Act 
shall be sold by the Secretary at a price equal to the sum 
of— 
(1) the face value of the coins; 
(2) the surcharge provided in section 7(a) with 
respect to such coins; and 
(3) the cost of designing and issuing the coins 
(including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, 
overhead expenses, marketing, and shipping). 
(b) PREPAID ORDERS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall accept 
prepaid orders for the coins minted under this Act 
before the issuance of such coins. 
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