Alright, so I had one of those James Garfield dollar coins sitting around the other day. You know, the gold-colored ones with the presidents on them. I got curious and thought, “Hmm, I wonder if this thing is worth more than just a dollar?” Seemed like a decent way to spend a few minutes, trying to figure it out.
My Process for Checking
First thing I did was just grab the coin and give it a good look over. It looked like most pocket change, honestly. Definitely wasn’t shiny and new. I could see Garfield’s face, the Statue of Liberty on the back, the usual stuff. It felt like a regular dollar coin.
Next, I went over to my computer. Didn’t really know where to start, so I just typed something like “James Garfield dollar coin value” into a search engine. Lots of stuff popped up right away.
I started clicking around, just reading what different places were saying. A couple of things became clear pretty fast:
- Condition is key. This seemed to be the biggest factor. Was the coin shiny and new-looking (they call it uncirculated) or did it look like it had been rattling around in someone’s pocket (circulated)? Mine was definitely circulated.
- Mint Marks matter sometimes. I looked on the edge of the coin for the little letter, like ‘P’ for Philadelphia or ‘D’ for Denver. Found one, but from what I read, for the Garfield coin, these are super common. Nothing special there.
- Errors are rare. Sometimes coins get messed up when they’re made, and those errors can be valuable. I checked my coin carefully, but it looked totally normal. No weird edges, no missing letters, nothing like that.
What I Found Out
After digging around for maybe 10-15 minutes, I got the general picture. For the most part, these James Garfield dollar coins, especially the ones you just find in your change, are typically worth… well, face value. Just one dollar.
It seems unless you have one that’s in absolutely perfect, untouched condition (maybe even professionally graded), or one with a known, specific error, there isn’t much extra value there. The vast majority of them are just worth a buck.
So, no hidden treasure found in my coin jar this time! It wasn’t exactly a surprise, but it was interesting to go through the steps and confirm it. Now I know what to expect if I find more of these presidential dollars.
