United States Honors Oneida Ancestor and Upstate New York with 2026 Native American $1 Coin

United States Honors Oneida Heroine Polly Cooper with 2026 Native American $1 Coin as America Approaches 250th Anniversary.

The United States Mint released its 2026 Native American $1 Coin January 27 in recognition of Oneida heroine Polly Cooper, who traveled with a band of Oneidas from their Upstate New York homelands to bring supplies and food to General George Washington’s starving troops at Valley Forge. The coin has been created as part of a federal program that celebrates the contributions of tribal nations and Native American individuals to the country’s development and growth.

Ahead of America’s 250th anniversary, the Oneida Indian Nation Council joined members of Congress and officials from the U.S. Department of the Treasury for a reception celebrating the Oneida Indian Nation’s legacy of cooperation, sovereignty and enduring partnership as First Allies of the United States.

The Oneida Indian Nation’s legacy as America’s First Allies was recognized by the federal government with the recent release of the United States Mint’s 2026 Native American $1 Coin. This year’s coin features Oneida heroine Polly Cooper in recognition of her efforts to bring supplies and food from her Oneida homelands in Upstate New York to General George Washington’s Continental Army troops at Valley Forge during the harsh winter of 1777-78.

Recognizing Polly Cooper and the Oneida Indian Nation in this way is especially timely, as this year the United States will observe the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The coin represents the Oneida people’s critical role in the founding of the United States through an alliance grounded in the strong belief in the right of all people to sovereignty and self-determination.