(1863) Brass Civil War Store Card F-165GH-1b, H.C. Wehrman OH

Coin Details

Description

Fuld 165GH-1b — store card of H.C. Wehrman, Cincinnati, Ohio. Cincinnati was the largest inland city in antebellum America and a critical supply center for the Union Army, driving Ohio to produce more varieties of Civil War store cards than any other state. The 12 cataloged varieties for H.C. Wehrman indicate a notable level of token production. This brass striking (Fuld 165GH-1b) is common to somewhat scarce among the known varieties. Token production was a specialized trade — die sinkers maintained catalogs of stock dies that merchants could pair with custom obverses. Federal coinage vanished from circulation after 1861 as citizens hoarded silver and copper for their metal value, leaving merchants to fill the void with tokens. Brass strikings are among the more available variants, though less common than copper. George and Melvin Fuld's catalog remains the standard reference for Civil War tokens, with each variety assigned a unique identification number.

Rarity Notes

Brass strikings are among the more available metal variants, though typically less common than copper. With 12 cataloged varieties, H.C. Wehrman was a notable token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 165GH-1b