(1835) Copper Token HT-371, J. & C. Peck NY

Coin Details

Auction Record

$780 XF45 08-20-2019 Stack's Bowers

Description

This 1835 copper J. & C. Peck token is the second die variety for the Troy, New York machinery builders, distinguished from HT-364 by specific die characteristics. The two-variety token program reflects the Pecks' sustained investment in advertising their cotton and woolen machinery as well as Seth Peck's Patent tin-working machines to the industrial customers who formed their primary market. The textile machinery business placed J. & C. Peck at the heart of antebellum America's industrial revolution. New England and upstate New York were experiencing a boom in cotton and woolen manufacturing, with new mills opening regularly along every suitable waterpower site. Each new mill required a full complement of processing machinery — from opening and cleaning equipment through carding, spinning, and weaving — and manufacturers like the Pecks competed to supply these installations. Troy's position as a machinery manufacturing center was reinforced by its access to raw materials (cast iron from local foundries, brass from Connecticut), skilled labor (machinists trained in the region's machine shops), and transportation (the Erie Canal and Hudson River for shipping heavy equipment to distant mills). The Peck tokens document one of the specialized manufacturers that contributed to Troy's reputation as an industrial powerhouse.

Rarity Notes

Common. Standard copper variety. Rarity R-1 to R-2.

Cross References

Rulau HT-371