(1861-65) Brass Civil War Store Card F-920A-1b, Fisher & Hendrix MI

Coin Details

Description

Fisher & Hendrix of Michigan issued this token as emergency currency during the Civil War. Michigan was a significant industrial state during the Civil War, with Detroit emerging as a major manufacturing center and merchants across the state producing tokens. With 2 known varieties, Fisher & Hendrix produced a modest number of token types. Struck in brass, this die combination (Fuld 920A-1b) is common to somewhat scarce. The dies for merchant tokens were usually cut by professional engravers who could produce a complete set in a matter of days. Civil War tokens addressed a practical problem: the wartime disappearance of federal small change made daily transactions nearly impossible without private substitutes. The brass composition gives this token a warm golden tone that contrasts with the reddish-brown of copper strikings. The cent-sized format was chosen deliberately to match the federal Indian Head cent, the coin most conspicuously absent from daily commerce.

Rarity Notes

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

Cross References

Fuld 920A-1b