(1838) Token HT-63, Mint Drop-Loco Foco

Coin Details

Auction Record

$2,400 MS65BN 06-09-2021 Stack's Bowers

Description

This 1838 copper token combines the Mint Drop design with a reference to the "Loco Foco" movement, creating one of the most politically dense pieces in the Hard Times Token series. The Loco Focos were a radical faction within the New York Democratic Party who advocated for equal rights, opposition to monopolies, and strict adherence to hard-money principles. Their name derived from an incident at Tammany Hall on October 29, 1835, when party conservatives turned off the gaslights to end a contentious meeting, and the radicals produced "loco foco" self-igniting friction matches to relight the room and continue their business. The 1838 date and the "Loco Foco" reference place this token at the intersection of several political currents: the ongoing Bank War, the Panic of 1837, and the internal Democratic Party struggle between moderates and radicals. The Loco Focos represented the extreme hard-money position within Jackson's own coalition, and their inclusion on a Hard Times Token indicates that even within the Democratic Party, there were deep divisions about monetary policy. This variety has been described as one of the "strangest and most enigmatic" Hard Times Tokens, featuring an obverse Liberty head with distinctively vacant-looking eyes that may represent deliberate artistic commentary on the perceived blindness of Democratic economic policies. The 29mm diameter makes it slightly larger than the standard cent-sized format.

Rarity Notes

Scarce. The Loco Foco variant is less commonly encountered than standard Mint Drop tokens.

Cross References

Low 55; Rulau HT-63