A head of George Washington, the first President of the United States, facing left.

Designer: John Flanagan (JF), 1932 version from a 1786 bust by Houdon / William Cousins.

The Tennessee State quarter celebrates 3 elements of the state’s musical heritage, as well as the 3 regions of Tennessee (the East, Middle and West). The fiddle (another name for the bowed string musical instrument more often called a violin) hearkens to the musical background of Eastern Tennessee’s Appalachian region. The guitar brings to mind Middle Tennessee’s rich Country music heritage. The Jazz and Blues of West Tennessee are represented by the trumpet. The 3 stars on the reverse symbolize the 3 distinct regions of Tennessee, as represented by the instruments.

There has been some controversy over the Tennessee quarter. Some sources claim that the details on the instruments depicted on the quarter are inaccurate, such as the number of strings on the guitar and the location of the tubing on the trumpet, although the number of strings on the guitar-like instrument is accurate if the instrument is in fact the Mexican vihuela that influenced the country-and-western music prominent in Nashville culture and business.

Tennessee has played a critical role in the development of many forms of American popular music, including rock and roll, blues, country, and rockabilly. Beale Street in Memphis is considered by many to be the birthplace of the blues, with musicians such as W.C. Handy performing in its clubs as early as 1909. Memphis is also home to Sun Records, where musicians such as Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, and Charlie Rich began their recording careers, and where rock and roll took shape in the 1950s. The 1927 Victor recording sessions in Bristol generally mark the beginning of the country music genre and the rise of the Grand Ole Opry in the 1930s helped make Nashville the center of the country music recording industry. Three brick-and-mortar museums recognize Tennessee's role in nurturing various forms of popular music: the Memphis Rock N' Soul Museum, the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, and the International Rock-A-Billy Museum in Jackson. Moreover, the Rockabilly Hall of Fame, an online site recognizing the development of rockabilly in which Tennessee played a crucial role, is based in Nashville.

Engraver: Donna Weaver (DW).