(1861) Copper-Nickel Civil War Store Card F-630AE-1do, G. Graham NY

Coin Details

Auction Record

$504 MS65 06-07-2020 Heritage Auctions

Description

Merchant token from G. Graham of New York, cataloged as Fuld 630AE-1do. New York state generated the second-largest body of Civil War token issues, concentrated in New York City but extending to Albany, Troy, Buffalo, and smaller commercial centers. This piece is an overstrike struck over a host coin, an 1863 Indian Head cent. Traces of the original design may be visible beneath the new impressions. 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 copper-nickel composition gave these tokens the closest resemblance to federal coinage of any metal variant. The cent-sized format was chosen deliberately to match the federal Indian Head cent, the coin most conspicuously absent from daily commerce.

Rarity Notes

Copper-nickel strikings are moderately scarce compared to pure copper or brass versions. Overstrike varieties are generally scarcer than tokens struck on blank planchets, as they required sourcing and re-striking existing coins. With 8 cataloged varieties, G. Graham was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 630AE-1do