(1860) Brass Civil War Store Card F-920M-1b, T. Racek WI

Coin Details

Auction Record

$168 MS64 10-03-2018 Heritage Auctions

Description

Fuld 920M-1b — store card of T. Racek, Wisconsin. Wisconsin was a growing frontier state with Milwaukee as its largest commercial center, and its merchants issued tokens as practical solutions to the coin shortage. With 2 known varieties, T. Racek produced a modest number of token types. The brass composition of this variety (Fuld 920M-1b) is common to somewhat scarce for this merchant. The dies for merchant tokens were usually cut by professional engravers who could produce a complete set in a matter of days. Congress banned private token issuance in April 1864, but before that, tokens like this one circulated freely as cent substitutes in Northern commerce. Brass planchets were readily available to die sinkers, making this a relatively accessible metal variant for collectors. Many Civil War tokens survive in high grades because merchants and the public saved them as novelties, resulting in a better average preservation than contemporary federal coins.

Rarity Notes

Brass strikings are among the more available metal variants, though typically less common than copper. With 2 cataloged varieties, T. Racek was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 920M-1b