(1840) Brass Token HT-77A, Martin Van Buren

Coin Details

Description

This 1840 brass Van Buren campaign token is another half-cent-sized piece at 24mm diameter, slightly larger than the 23mm HT-76 but still well below the standard cent size. The brass composition and small format indicate this was produced as a campaign charm or badge rather than as a circulatory token. The production of Van Buren campaign tokens in multiple sizes and metals demonstrates the sophistication of political merchandising by 1840. Campaign organizers could order tokens in various formats to serve different purposes: cent-sized pieces for distribution as circulating propaganda, half-cent-sized pieces for wearing as campaign badges, and precious-metal strikings for presentation to important supporters and donors. Van Buren's defeat in the 1840 election — he lost the Electoral College 234-60 to Harrison — ended the Democratic hold on the presidency that had begun with Jackson's election in 1828. The campaign tokens from this election thus mark the conclusion of the Jacksonian era in American politics and the transition to the Whig ascendancy, however brief it proved to be. Harrison's death just 31 days after inauguration and Tyler's subsequent break with the Whigs ensured that the political turmoil of the Hard Times era would continue in new forms.

Rarity Notes

Scarce. Small-format brass campaign piece with limited surviving examples.

Cross References

Low 194; Rulau HT-77A