(1863) Brass Civil War Store Card F-460G-1b, J.C. Hereth IN

Coin Details

Description

Civil War-era store card from J.C. Hereth, an Indianapolis, Indiana business. As Indiana's capital and a major railroad hub, Indianapolis was the center of the state's Civil War token production, with merchants using tokens as practical emergency currency. J.C. Hereth issued 5 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. The brass composition of this variety (Fuld 460G-1b) is common to somewhat scarce for this merchant. 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. The brass composition gives this token a warm golden tone that contrasts with the reddish-brown of copper strikings. 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

Brass strikings are among the more available metal variants, though typically less common than copper. With 5 cataloged varieties, J.C. Hereth was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 460G-1b