(1841) Copper Token HT-68, May 10th

Coin Details

Auction Record

$264 MS63BN 08-20-2019 Stack's Bowers

Description

This 1841 copper May Tenth token extends the Specie Payments Suspended commemorative into the final phase of the Hard Times period. The later date reflects the ongoing relevance of the May 10, 1837 bank suspension as a political reference point — four years after the event, its memory still carried enough political charge to make tokens commemorating it commercially viable. The persistence of May Tenth tokens through 1841 reflects both the depth of the economic depression and the enduring political anger it generated. The Hard Times depression was not a brief sharp shock but a prolonged agony that lasted roughly seven years (1837-1844), making it one of the longest economic contractions in American history before the Great Depression. Throughout this extended period, the coin shortage that motivated token production continued, as people hoarded whatever official coins they could acquire and spent tokens and shin plasters instead. The 1841 production of May Tenth tokens also demonstrates the evolution of the Hard Times Token from emergency currency to established commercial product. By 1841, token manufacturers had been operating for nearly a decade and had developed efficient production and distribution systems. The tokens were no longer improvised responses to a sudden crisis but products of a mature, if informal, industry.

Rarity Notes

Common. Later-date copper variant with standard availability in the marketplace.

Cross References

Low 49; Rulau HT-68