(1837) Copper Token HT-104, Benedict & Burnham

Coin Details

Auction Record

$216 AU58BN 08-22-2021 Heritage Auctions

Description

This 1837 copper token was produced by Benedict & Burnham of Waterbury, Connecticut, one of the major brass manufacturing firms that made the city the center of America's metalworking industry. Benedict & Burnham was Scovill's principal competitor in the Waterbury brass industry, and their entry into Hard Times Token production was a natural competitive response to Scovill's dominance of the market. The firm was founded by Aaron Benedict, who began manufacturing brass buttons in a small shop in 1812. By the 1830s, Benedict & Burnham had grown into a major industrial enterprise with rolling mills, wire-drawing equipment, and die-striking facilities comparable to Scovill's. Their Hard Times Token production, while less extensive than Scovill's, demonstrates the broad participation of Waterbury manufacturers in the token industry. Benedict & Burnham's later history included a merger with other Waterbury brass companies to form the American Brass Company, which eventually became part of Anaconda Copper Mining Company. The trajectory from small-town button maker to component of a multinational mining corporation illustrates the explosive growth of American manufacturing during the nineteenth century — a growth that Hard Times Tokens both reflect and facilitated through their role as commercial currency.

Rarity Notes

Common. Benedict & Burnham copper token with good availability.

Cross References

Low 102; Rulau HT-104