Laura Gardin Fraser was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 sculptor and the wife of sculptor James Earle Fraser.

Laura Gardin studied under Fraser at the Art Students League of New York

Art Students League of New York

The Art Students League of New York is an art school located on West 57th Street in New York City. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists, and has maintained for over 130 years a tradition of offering reasonably priced classes on a...

 from 1910 to 1912. Alone or with her husband she designed a number of U.S. coins, notably the Oregon Trail Memorial half dollar

Oregon Trail Memorial half dollar

The Oregon Trail half dollar commemorative coin was minted to honor the migration of settlers to the west prior to the California Gold Rush, which began in 1849...

.

In 1931 she was the winner of the competition to design a new quarter

Quarter (United States coin)

A quarter dollar, commonly shortened to quarter, is a coin worth ¼ of a United States dollar, or 25 cents. The quarter has been produced since 1796. The choice of 25¢ as a denomination, as opposed to 20¢ which is more common in other parts of the world, originated with the practice of dividing...

 with George Washington

George Washington

George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...

 on the obverse. Her winning design was ignored by the then-Treasury Secretary

United States Secretary of the Treasury

The Secretary of the Treasury of the United States is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, which is concerned with financial and monetary matters, and, until 2003, also with some issues of national security and defense. This position in the Federal Government of the United...

, Andrew Mellon, who selected a design by John Flanagan. Fraser's design was coined as a commemorative

Commemorative coin

Commemorative coins are coins that were issued to commemorate some particular event or issue. Most world commemorative coins were issued from the 1960s onward, although there are numerous examples of commemorative coins of earlier date. Such coins have a distinct design with reference to the...

 five-dollar gold piece in 1999.