(1837) Token HT-314, Smith's Clock Establishment NY

Coin Details

Auction Record

$660 MS64BN 11-18-2019 Stack's Bowers

Description

This 1837 copper Smith's Clock Establishment token features the curved "Establishment" lettering on the reverse without the decorative ornaments that distinguish HT-315. The obverse displays the signature clock face reading 10:14 surrounded by Benjamin Franklin's aphorism "TIME IS MONEY." The token identifies the business at No. 7½ Bowery, New York. The distinction between HT-313 (straight script), HT-314 (curved script, no ornaments), and HT-315 (curved script with ornaments) reflects different die states or die pairings used across the production run. These variations were unintentional — the result of different engravers cutting replacement dies as originals wore out — rather than deliberate marketing decisions. Nevertheless, they provide the die variety distinctions that are the foundation of Hard Times Token collecting. The Bowery location at 7½ was a half-address, a common feature of densely built New York commercial streets where buildings were subdivided to accommodate multiple small businesses. Clock shops, watch repair establishments, and jewelers clustered along the Bowery and neighboring streets, serving the working-class and middle-class residents of the Lower East Side and the visitors who frequented the Bowery's famous theaters and amusement halls.

Rarity Notes

Common. The curved-script-no-ornaments variety is regularly available. Rarity R-1 to R-2.

Cross References

Low 134; Rulau HT-314