(1863) Brass Civil War Store Card F-370A-4b, E. & L. Small IN

Coin Details

Description

Fuld 370A-4b — store card of E. & L. Small, Hagerstown, Indiana. Indiana was an important agricultural and manufacturing state, with merchants producing store cards as emergency currency when federal coinage was hoarded. E. & L. Small issued 9 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. Struck in brass, this die combination (Fuld 370A-4b) is common to somewhat scarce. 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 planchets were readily available to die sinkers, making this a relatively accessible metal variant for collectors. 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

Brass strikings are among the more available metal variants, though typically less common than copper. With 9 cataloged varieties, E. & L. Small was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 370A-4b