Laura Gardin Fraser was a sculptor of medals, fountains, and monumental commemorative works. Because of her skill combined with the fact that she was a woman working in a medium dominated by men, she became noteworthy for several reasons.

She was the first woman to design a coin for the United States Treasury, a commission she won in 1921 with her design for the Alabama Centennial Commemorative half-dollar. In 1926, she was also the first woman to win the Saltus Medal* of the American Numismatic Society, the highest award for medal artistry in the United States. She created, among others, the American Numismatic Society Centenary Medal, American Geographic Society Morse Medal, and George Washington Bicentennial Med...