By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes …..
The 2007-P Thomas Jefferson Presidential Dollar is the circulating version of the Jefferson Dollar struck at the Philadelphia Mint. The coin was the third design issued in the year and honored the nation’s third president.
Thomas Jefferson’s Life and Legacy
Thomas Jefferson was born on April 13, 1743, on Shadwell Plantation in Colonial Virginia. Born into a wealthy slaveholding family, the eldest of 10 children, young Jefferson inherited much of his father’s estate–including 52 slaves–when he was just 14 years old. Under the guardianship of his father’s friend John Harvie, the young Jefferson dutifully pursued his education and enrolled in the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, where he studied mathematics, philosophy, and politics. He read law under George Wythe and was admitted to the Virginia Bar in 1767.
As a slaveowner, a member of the House of Burgesses, and a lawyer, Jefferson did push for reforms to the institution of slavery but was opposed by the other slave-owning members.
In 1776, Jefferson served as the principal author of the Declaration of Independence, a landmark document in human history that asserted man’s natural rights and established the founding principles of American self-government. During the Revolutionary War, Jefferson served two one-year terms as the Governor of Virginia, moving the state capital from Williamsburg to Richmond, which was located 70 miles from his home at Monticello and roughly three days’ travel away at the time.
Jefferson served in the Congress of the Confederation and worked on establishing a national currency. Some of Jefferson’s ideas, including the decimal currency system, were adopted by the United States Congress in 1792. Jefferson also worked on policies related to westward settlement, an issue that would reemerge during his terms in office. Jefferson spent 1784 to 1789 in Paris as the American Ambassador to France. He returned to the United States shortly after the start of the French Revolution, which the American Government at first supported with near unanimity. As the Revolution turned increasingly violent, cracks in U.S. support emerged, with Jefferson on the side of the radicals and President George Washington and other Federalists taking a dimmer view of the Revolution’s violence.
From 1790 to 1793, Jefferson served as Washington’s first Secretary of State. In 1796, he narrowly lost the presidency to his political rival John Adams, for whom he served in opposition as Vice President – something unthinkable in modern American politics.
Jefferson served two terms as President, defeating Adams in a rematch of the 1796 contest. Dubbed “The Revolution of 1800”, Jefferson’s victory began an era of Democratic-Republican rule that lasted through to the end of the 1820s.
Jefferson’s Presidency was consequential. Beyond the Louisiana Purchase that doubled the size of the country, Jefferson worked to reduce the national debt, pardoned those imprisoned under the Alien and Sedition Acts, tried to rein in the Bank of the United States, and established the United States Military Academy at West Point. He also sought to annex Florida from Spain, but failed.
Jefferson’s time as the nation’s chief executive may not seem as majestic as the precedent-setting tenure of Washington, or as the nation-preserving Presidency of Lincoln, or the civilization-saving Presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt, but no president beyond these three have had as great an impact for the good of the nation as Thomas Jefferson.
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2007-P Thomas Jefferson Presidential Dollar Circulation Strike Market Data and Noteworthy Specimens
Top Population: PCGS MS67 (875, 3/2025), NGC MS68 (161, 3/2025), and CAC N/A (0, 3/2025).
- NGC MS66: eBay, March 15, 2025 – $15. Buy It Now. First Day of Issue.
- PCGS MS66: eBay, February 24, 2025 – $5.99. 1 Bid. Position A.
- PCGS MS66: eBay, February 22, 2025 – $5.99. 1 Bid. Position B.
- PCGS MS65: eBay, March 23, 2025 – $29.99 – Buy It Now. Position B.
- NGC MS65: eBay, February 15, 2025 – $3.95. 1 Bid.
Satin Finish Market Data and Noteworthy Specimens
The United States Mint produced Uncirculated Coin Sets, including one example of each coin struck by the Mint’s Philadelphia and Denver facilities. Historically, coins from these sets are produced the same way coins are struck for circulation. Still, from 2005-2010, the U.S. Mint opted to “improve” the quality of these sets by using sandblasted dies, which gave the coins a satin finish.
This decision introduced a new type of coin that lacked enough distinctiveness or appeal to excite the coin-collecting community. While the specimen strikes are usually of excellent quality (often grading MS68 or higher), this is not typically true for the circulation strikes. In addition, the Mint produced a cheaper Satin Finish set that contained only the Presidential Dollar coins.
Note: PCGS has used both MS and SP designations for the Satin Finish coins.
Top Population: PCGS MS69 (100, 3/2025), NGC MS69 (7, 3/2025), and CAC N/A (0, 3/2025).
- PCGS MS68: eBay, March 9, 2025 – $7.50. Buy It Now.
- PCGS MS68: eBay, February 9, 2025 – $10. Buy It Now.
- NGC MS67: eBay, March 6, 2025 – $14.95. Buy It Now.
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Design
Obverse:
A front-facing effigy of Thomas Jefferson, designed by now-Chief Engraver Joseph Menna, dominates the obverse. The inscription THOMAS JEFFERSON runs clockwise along the top, while the inscriptions 3rd PRESIDENT | 1801 – 1809 run counterclockwise at the bottom. Menna’s initials JFM are at the corner of Jefferson’s left collar (viewer’s right).
Common Reverse:
Mint Sculptor-Engraver Don Everhart’s reverse design features an ant’s-eye view of the Statue of Liberty offset to the left. On the coin, Liberty occupies the bottom right quadrant, her extended elbow being the coin’s center point. The design is framed by a thin inner circle, which separates the graphic design from the legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. Beneath Liberty’s extended torch-bearing arm is the denomination $1. This is the common reverse design for all Presidential Dollar coins.
Edge:
The edge of the Presidential Dollar is lettered and features the mottos IN GOD WE TRUST and E PLURIBUS UNUM, the mintmark, the year of issuance, and 13 five-pointed stars. This edge inscription may be oriented facing the obverse (Position A) or the reverse (Position B).
Designers
Joseph “Joe” Menna is a prolific sculptor who joined the U.S. Mint in 2005. Menna became Chief Engraver in 2019 (View Designer’s Profile).
Don Everhart joined the United States Mint in 2004 after a long and successful career as a sculptor and designer of medals. He retired in 2017 and now participates in the Mint’s Artistic Infusion Program (AIP) (View Designer’s Profile).
2007-P Thomas Jefferson Presidential Dollar Coin Specifications
| Country: | United States of America |
| Year of Issue: | 2007 |
| Denomination: | One Dollar (USD) |
| Mintmark: | P (Philadelphia) |
| Mintage: | Business Strike: 100,800,000; Specimen: 895,628 |
| Alloy: | .770 copper, .120 zinc, 0.070 manganese, 0.040 nickel |
| Weight: | 8.10 g |
| Diameter: | 26.55 mm |
| Edge: | Lettered: IN GOD WE TRUST * 2007 P E PLURIBUS UNUM * |
| OBV Designer: | Joseph Menna |
| REV Designer: | Don Everhart |
| Quality: | Uncirculated; Specimen |
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