(1861) Copper Civil War Store Card F-150R-1a, A.W. Escherich IL

Coin Details

Description

A.W. Escherich of Chicago issued this token as emergency currency during the Civil War coin shortage. Chicago was one of the fastest-growing cities in the world by 1860, rapidly becoming America's railroad hub and grain trading center with a population of 112,000. With 4 known varieties, A.W. Escherich produced a modest number of token types. The copper composition of this variety (Fuld 150R-1a) is common for this merchant. Token manufacturers struck pieces by the thousands, using hand-fed screw presses capable of producing several hundred tokens per hour. Between 1862 and 1864, Northern merchants produced millions of private tokens to compensate for the disappearance of federal coinage. Token production peaked in 1863 when the coin shortage was most acute, with die sinkers working around the clock to fill merchant orders.

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 4 cataloged varieties, A.W. Escherich was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 150R-1a