1863 Civil War Store Card F-225AF-1A, MI

Coin Details

Description

F. Geiss & Bro's of Michigan produced this token as a cent substitute during the wartime coin shortage. Michigan's merchants across numerous cities actively produced tokens to combat the small change shortage affecting Northern commerce. The 11 cataloged varieties for F. Geiss & Bro's indicate a notable level of token production. The copper composition of this variety (Fuld 225AF-1A) is common for this merchant. Many Civil War tokens share common reverse dies, as die sinkers paired merchant-specific obverses with stock patriotic or advertising reverses. Civil War tokens addressed a practical problem: the wartime disappearance of federal small change made daily transactions nearly impossible without private substitutes. 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 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 11 cataloged varieties, F. Geiss & Bro's was a notable token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 225AF-1A