(1835-41) Token HT-122, N. Orleans LA

Coin Details

Auction Record

$1,058 MS63 08-02-2016 Heritage Auctions

Description

This brass token with reeded edge and 27mm diameter identifies John A. Merle & Co., commission merchants in New Orleans. Merle was a prominent member of the Swiss community in New Orleans who served as president of the Swiss Benevolent Society when it was founded in 1837 and was appointed Swiss Consul to New Orleans on August 27, 1838. His business connections spanned international commerce and local real estate. Merle's career illustrates both the opportunities and risks of antebellum New Orleans commerce. A member of the distinguished Swiss family Mere d'Aubigne of Geneva, he established himself as a successful commission merchant handling goods on behalf of distant principals. His residence at 1113 Chartres Street—now the historic Beauregard-Keyes House—reflected his substantial prosperity. However, the Panic of 1837 devastated his finances, and on December 10, 1840, the Parish Court ordered the forced sale of seventeen parcels of real estate, forty-six enslaved persons, and various financial holdings to satisfy his creditors. The token's date range of 1835–41 encompasses Merle's arc from prosperous consul to bankrupt debtor, making it a poignant artifact of the Hard Times' destructive impact on even well-connected international merchants.

Rarity Notes

Scarce. Brass, reeded edge, 27mm. Swiss Consul to New Orleans. Heritage Auctions MS63 sold for $1,058 (August 2016).

Cross References

Rulau HT-122