CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – Thomas Jefferson and Treasurer of the United States Brandon Beach shook hands as Monticello’s ceremony celebrating its Declaration of Independence quarter began on Wednesday afternoon.

Local reenactor Bill Barker assumed the former president’s likeness to commemorate the new coin – released for the United States 250th anniversary – which shows Thomas Jefferson’s silhouette on one side and the Liberty Bell. Beach and Director of the United States Mint Paul Hollis made remarks on the coin’s release. The coin is the first to feature a president on two different denominations of regular issue coins.

The event was open to the public, with many visitors to Thomas Jefferson’s estate filtering in to see the presentation and the final “pour” of the coins into a wooden box.

The third of five commemorative coins being released for the semi-quincentennial, Hollis noted the scale of the project for the Mint and their historical significance.

“We haven’t seen anything done of this magnitude in over 100 years,” Hollis said. “All of America’s coins have stories.”

U.S. Mint Metallic Artist John McGraw, who sculpted the coin’s Liberty Bell side, was also present at the ceremony and signed commemorative coin holders after remarks were made. 

Hollis noted that Jefferson was chosen for the quarter not only for his legacy as a Founding Father and third president of the United States, but for his impact on coinage in the early years of the country. After the Coinage Act of 1792, Jefferson donated $75 worth of his own silver to the Mint for the first-ever official coinage, pursuing a new national standard for currency that he envisioned would connect the new republic.

“I just wanted to share Thomas Jefferson’s role in our coins, and especially the early development of our coins,” Hollis said. “To see his portrait honored in the way that this quarter honors our third president is amazing.”

Aside from the Thomas Jefferson quarter, two others have been released depicting the Mayflower, George Washington, and two yet to be released will feature presidents Abraham Lincoln and James Madison.

Current U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach emphasized that the coins reflect American excellence and the optimism of the Trump Administration approaching the United States’ 250th anniversary July 4. Beach encouraged the crowd to take advantage of Trump Accounts, a new individual retirement account for U.S. citizens under 18 and an $1,000 seed program for children born between Jan. 1, 2025 and Dec. 31, 2028.

“We are blessed to live in this country,” Beach said. “We want to give you the tools in the toolbox to have success and really continue the principles that Thomas Jefferson started.”

Beach also presented a newly-minted $1 legal tender coin featuring the image of current president Donald Trump, which he noted will go into production next week and be available by the Fourth of July. The face of the silver coin reads “LIBERTY” with the president’s official portrait etched on the front, with his seal on the back.

Federal law concerning $1 coins honoring presidents of the United States prohibits them from bearing the image of a living former or current President until two years have passed following the death of said president, but new regulations passed in 2020 on semi-quincentennial coins have made regulations less clear.

Monticello’s Vice President for Research Dr. Andrew Davenport reflected on Jefferson’s legacy, observing that U.S. currency embodies principles of democracy and is a pillar of American life.

“Jefferson changed the world,” Davenport said. “Some of these contributions, like the decimal system of U.S. currency are so radically commonsensical that they appear to us now as self-evident.”

The coins are available for purchase on the United States Mint’s website and some will be put in circulation.