The 2007 John Adams dollar is the second issue in the Presidential $1 coin program, which launched in 2007.
Depicting each of the deceased former United States presidents in the order they served, the Presidential $1 coin series has produced several error coins that are worth big bucks.
And like the 2007 George Washington dollar errors that came before, the John Adams dollar error coins are also rare and valuable!
So, which 2007 John Adams dollar coin errors should you be looking for? And how much are John Adams dollar coins without any errors worth?
Here’s the scoop on John Adams dollar coins…
Most Valuable John Adams Dollar Coin Errors
You’re probably hoping to find a rare John Adams dollar coin in your loose change. So let’s see if you’ve got a 2007 John Adams dollar with an error or variety — such as one of these:
Missing Edge Lettering
Just like many of the George Washington dollar coins made a little earlier in 2007, some John Adams dollars were also mistakenly struck without edge lettering.
The absence of edge lettering on some of these coins also led to the accidental omission of the motto “IN GOD WE TRUST” — which was struck on the edges of 2007 Presidential $1 coins. Some collectors dub these 2007 plain edge dollar errors Godless dollars, as they lack the obvious reference to God.
These so-called Godless dollars (or plain edge errors) are rare coins. And a John Adams dollar that’s missing edge lettering is quite a find, too — with values of $100 or more!
When the Mint started the Presidential dollar program in 2007, they decided to put the date, mintmark, and key inscriptions (E Pluribus Unum and In God We Trust) onto the thin outer edge of the coin using a separate production step that imparts edge lettering. Well, a bunch of John Adams dollars skipped that second machine entirely and escaped into the wild with completely smooth, blank edges! Since the motto was missing, they were dubbed “Godless Dollars.” If you find a John Adams dollar with a totally blank edge, it’s a legit Mint error! NOTE: Fraudsters sometimes shave down the edges of a normal dollar coin in their garage to fake this same effect. To know for sure, drop your dollar coin on a scale. A real missing-edge-lettering error coin still weighs its full 8.1 grams. If it weighs less, then someone probably ground the letters off!
Doubled Edge Lettering
Officials at the U.S. Mint tried very hard not to repeat the Godless dollar mistake encountered with George Washington dollars. That certainly didn’t work out too well, though. Some of the John Adams dollars missed the edge lettering phase of striking, resulting in even more Godless dollars in circulation.
Guess what else? In an attempt to avoid the Godless dollar mistake, some John Adams dollars ran through the edge lettering press twice. This double stamping of the edge lettering resulted in overlapped lettering that some collectors call the “Typewriter Edge” error.
These valuable doubled edge dollar errors are worth $30 and up.
To identify a John Adams dollar coin with doubled edge lettering, use a magnifier to study the edge text. Look for one of two versions: (1) Overlapped Doubling — Where the second set of words is stamped right on top of the first set, making the text look blurry, shadowed, or ghosted. Or (2) Inverted Doubling — This is the jackpot. This is when the coin got flipped over before the second pass. You’ll see one set of letters right-side up, and a second set of letters stamped completely upside down right across them!
Inverted Doubled Edge Lettering
And those John Adams dollars that were fed through the edge lettering press twice?…
Sometimes they were oriented different directions on each of their two passes:
- Once with the lettering oriented upward toward the president’s portrait
- And the other time with the lettering facing the other way
This rare error is worth $50 or more.
If you’re scanning the rims of your John Adams dollars, this is the error that will really make your eyes cross! Collectors call the standard edge orientations “Position A” (edge lettering is upside-down when the President’s portrait is facing up) and “Position B” (edge lettering is face-up when the president’s portrait is facing up). Normally, a coin only gets one pass through the edge machine — landing on one or the other. But when these specific coins got double-stamped, they didn’t just get hit twice in the same direction. The letters overlapped! When you look through a magnifier, you’ll see a chaotic jumble of text where the dates and mottoes are literally running right over each other. Finding a 2007 John Adams dollar that is clearly double stamped is a massive win!
Other John Adams Dollar Coin Errors To Look For
In addition to the popular missing lettering or doubled edge lettering dollars, there are many other rare and valuable 2007 John Adams errors to look for:
Strikethrough Errors
Sometimes grease, metal fragments, or other foreign material gets into the dies. When this happens, the coin won’t be completely struck.
A strikethrough error involving, say, grease will obscure much of the detail on the coin — perhaps even causing some letters or other important design elements to go missing.
Strikethrough errors involving cloth threads, metal shards, or other rigid debris can cause all kinds of crazy results on the coin.
Values for Presidential $1 coins with these weird errors range all over the board:
- More common grease-filled die errors with only some letters or light interruptions to the design may be worth $5 or $10.
- Dramatic strikethrough errors involving nails, staples, and other odd debris can take $150 or more.
Broadstrike Errors
When a Presidential $1 coin wasn’t properly struck inside its retaining collar on the press, the new coin flattened out and became much wider and thinner than ordinary specimens. These errors are known as broadstruck coins — and they’re worth a bundle, too!
A John Adams broadstruck error dollar can command as much $500, sometimes more.
Off-Center Errors
Presidential $1 coins that weren’t struck perfectly centered become collectible error coins.
Some off-center coins are more relatively common than others — and when it comes to Presidential $1 coins, off-center errors are really quite rare!
Off-center John Adams dollars are worth $1,000 or more.
Many people think they’ve found a rare error because when they hold the coin face-up and look at the edge, the text is upside down. This is completely normal. The Mint dumped blank coins into the edge-stamping machine completely at random. Statistically, just about 50% of all Presidential dollars ever made have “upside-down” edge lettering (collectors call them Position A and Position B). It’s an interesting variation, but it adds zero premium value to the coin.
How Much Is A “Normal” John Adams Dollar Coin Worth?
While you’re on the hunt for rare and valuable Presidential $1 error coins (like those mentioned above), you’re more likely to find normal John Adams dollars in your pocket change.
So… what are these worth?
“P” And “D” Mintmarks
These are the most common John Adams dollars and were produced for circulation. A total of 112,420,000 were struck at the Philadelphia Mint with the “P” mintmark, while 112,140,000 were made at the Denver Mint with a “D” mintmark.
- Circulated examples of the “P” and “D” versions without errors are worth face value and are safe to spend as money.
- Uncirculated “P” and “D” John Adams dollars are worth $1.50 and up.
“S” Mintmark Proofs
The San Francisco Mint struck 3,965,989 proofs with an “S” mintmark.
These coins were included in proof sets for coin collectors and weren’t intended for circulation. They’re worth $3 and up.
5 Tips For Finding Valuable John Adams Dollars
If you want to find a rare John Adams dollar coin error, here are 5 ways to improve your odds:
#1 – Check coin rolls and coin bags. Rolls of John Adams dollars contain 25 coins. Bags generally contain at least 250 coins.
#2 – Look through your loose change and coin jars. Come across any Presidential $1 coins that you threw aside in the coin jar? It’s time to take them out and see if any have errors!
#3 – Carefully inspect proof sets and uncirculated sets. Many collectors have found some incredible errors in these popular annual U.S. Mint products. So, be sure to thoroughly check your 2007 proof sets and 2007 mint sets for any John Adams dollar errors they may happen to contain.
#4 – Make sure you have a coin loupe or magnifying glass handy. Some of the less-obvious errors are better seen with a magnifying glass or coin loupe of 5x power or better.
#5 – Check all areas of the coin. Don’t just look at the obverse (front) or reverse (back) of your dollar coins. Remember, some of the most valuable John Adams dollar coin errors involve the edges!
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