(1861-65) Copper Civil War Store Card F-510AP-4a, H. Upmeyer WI

Coin Details

Description

Fuld 510AP-4a — store card of H. Upmeyer, 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. H. Upmeyer issued 8 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. The copper composition of this variety (Fuld 510AP-4a) is common for this merchant. Many Civil War tokens share common reverse dies, as die sinkers paired merchant-specific obverses with stock patriotic or advertising reverses. Civil War tokens addressed a practical problem: the wartime disappearance of federal small change made daily transactions nearly impossible without private substitutes. Surviving specimens are tangible artifacts of the wartime monetary crisis that affected every commercial transaction in the Northern states.

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 8 cataloged varieties, H. Upmeyer was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 510AP-4a