(1861) Copper Civil War Store Card F-185A-1a, N.T. Waterman MI

Coin Details

Auction Record

$900 XF45BN 09-21-2022 Stack's Bowers

Description

N.T. Waterman, based in Coldwater, Michigan, produced this token as a cent substitute during the wartime coin shortage. 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, N.T. Waterman produced a modest number of token types. This copper striking (Fuld 185A-1a) is common among the known varieties. Token manufacturers struck pieces by the thousands, using hand-fed screw presses capable of producing several hundred tokens per hour. The token era ended when Congress authorized new federal small-denomination currency and criminalized private token production in 1864. After Congress banned private coinage in 1864, surviving tokens became instant collectibles, with serious collecting beginning within a decade of the war's end.

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, N.T. Waterman was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 185A-1a