Medal - Shell’s States of the Union Coin Game, Version 1 Delaware

States of the Union Coin Game - Version 1
Shell’s States of the Union Coin Game, Version 1 was a collect-and-win promotional game released by Shell Oil Company in 1969. Version 1 was distinctly different from Version 2.

In this game, players received a game piece with every visit to a Shell gas station. In the opaque packet was an aluminum coin with one of the fifty states on it. You placed your coin on a game card and tried to collect all the states in one section of the card in which case you won the prize indicated for that section. If your medallion had INSTANT WINNER on the back you won a prize determined by the state on the front - up to $5,000.00!

You could only win two things in Version 1 of Shell’s States of the Union Coin Game; cash or a beautiful 50-state medal set struck in bronze. Cash prizes were $1, $5, $50, $100, $500, $1,000 and $5,000.

The aluminum game medallions and the bronze states prize sets were both produced by The Franklin Mint in 1969.

Version 1 of Shell's States of the Union game was released in some parts of the country while Version 2 was released in others. The two games ran concurrently. In fact, four Shell Oil promotional games ran concurrently; Mr. President Coin Game, Famous Facts and Faces, States of the Union Version 1 and States of the Union Version 2. None of them ran at the same time in the same region, but some regions saw two or three of these games in rapid succession in 1968 and 1969.

When released in a region it ran for three to five months then ended. The game pieces were interesting and fun to collect and there are millions of the common game coins still around. The prize-winning key coins are hard to find and, for some, may no longer exist. Therefore, assembling a set of the aluminum game pieces - all fifty states- may be impossible.

The Game Pieces
Manufacturer: The Franklin Mint in 1969
Composition: Aluminum alloy, proprietary to The Franklin Mint
Obverse Designs: 50
Reverse Designs: 2
Total Different Medallions: 50
Packaging: Plastic capsules with a paper cover (see below)
Quantity Produced: Unknown.




Http://www.billjamie.com/Shell/Shell-Coin-Game/States-Of-The-Union/States-Of-The-Union-1.html
http://www.coins-n-medals.com/Exhibits/ShellGames/ShellStatesGame.html