the eagles originally had 15 stars on the obverse, representing the fifteen states as of 1795. with the admission of tennessee as a state in 1796, a sixteenth star was added to the obverse. the first 1796 eagles were delivered by the mint on june 2, the day after tennessee's admission. breen notes that as tennessee's statehood had been uncertain owing to opposition in congress until shortly before the actual admission, the 16-star eagles most likely were not prepared until just before it became a state on june 1. other 1796 coins, with smaller denominations, are known to have been struck on polished blanks for presentation in connection with the statehood celebrations; it is likely eagles were struck in this way as well. with the possibility of additional states being added to the union in years to come, mint officials decided to have the obverse feature only 13 stars, representing the original states of the union. the mint's coinage was decreased due to yellow fever epidemics in philadelphia in 1796, 1797, 1801, and 1803; it struck fewer eagles in those four years, giving priority to more popular coins.