View All Civil War Store Cards - New York

(1861-65) Brass Civil War Store Card F-145B-1b, G.L. Bowne NY

Strike Type

Coin Details

Year

1861

Denomination

Store Cards

Strike Type

Regular Strike

Series

Civil War Store Cards

Designer

Various private die sinkers including John Stanton, William Bridgens, and others

Composition

bronze

Weight

4.5g

Diameter

19mm

Edge

Plain

Auction Record

Price realized: $192
Sold: 15 April 2021
Grade: MS65
Auction house: Stack's Bowers

Description

G.L. Bowne of New York issued this Civil War store card during the 1862-1864 coin shortage. G.L. Bowne operated "The Iron Clad" hardware store in Cooperstown, New York — a business name cleverly referencing both ironclad warships and the iron goods sold within. His tokens read "WILL REDEEM AT THE IRON CLAD / G.L. BOWNE." The Iron Clad Building at 92 Main Street is now a contributing structure to the Cooperstown Historic District. Token production was a specialized trade — die sinkers maintained catalogs of stock dies that merchants could pair with custom obverses. Merchant-issued tokens circulated as substitutes for scarce federal coinage throughout the Northern states between 1862 and 1864.