(1861-65) Civil War Store Card F-115-G-2a, Boston; Tuttle's 10 cents MA

Coin Details

Description

Store card of Boston; Tuttle�s 10 cents in Massachusetts, struck during the 1862-1864 token era. Massachusetts was a center of manufacturing and abolitionist sentiment, with Boston and surrounding cities contributing Civil War tokens as emergency currency. The token trade was competitive, with die sinkers in New York, Cincinnati, and other cities vying for merchant orders across the region. The hoarding of federal coinage created an acute shortage of small change, prompting thousands of merchants to issue tokens as practical substitutes. Merchants in border states faced particular challenges during the coin shortage, as economic uncertainty and military activity disrupted normal commercial patterns more severely than in the interior. George and Melvin Fuld's catalog remains the standard reference for Civil War tokens, with each variety assigned a unique identification number.

Rarity Notes

Copper strikings are generally the most common metal variant for Civil War store cards, as copper was the standard planchet material mimicking the federal cent. With 2 cataloged varieties, Boston; Tuttle�s 5 cents was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 115-G