(1837) Copper Token HT-239, Centre Market NY

Coin Details

Auction Record

$930 MS62BN 08-22-2021 Heritage Auctions

Description

This 1837 copper token depicts the Centre Market building in Manhattan's 14th Ward, one of the major public markets that served as hubs of commercial activity in antebellum New York City. The obverse shows the market building with pillared facade, surrounded by "CENTRE MARKET ACCOMMODATION" and "14TH WARD N YORK." The reverse features the standard "MILLIONS FOR DEFENCE NOT ONE CENT FOR TRIBUTE" motto within a wreath. Centre Market, located on Centre Street near Grand Street in Lower Manhattan, was one of several public markets that provided essential food distribution services to the growing city. These markets were municipal institutions where farmers, butchers, fishmongers, and other food vendors rented stalls to sell their products directly to consumers. The token's reference to "ACCOMMODATION" indicates it was issued to facilitate transactions within the market itself, serving as a convenient denomination for the small purchases that characterized market shopping. The use of a specific building on the token's obverse connects the political messaging of the reverse to a tangible commercial institution, grounding abstract arguments about monetary policy in the daily reality of food shopping and market commerce. Centre Market customers who received these tokens in change encountered the "NOT ONE CENT" political message as a natural part of their shopping experience.

Rarity Notes

Common. The Centre Market token is one of the most frequently encountered New York merchant tokens. Rarity R-1.

Cross References

Low 95; Rulau HT-239