(1863) Copper Civil War Store Card F-105S-1a, Webster & Co. NY

Coin Details

Auction Record

$204 MS65BN 11-18-2020 Stack's Bowers

Description

Webster & Co. of New York issued this Civil War store card during the 1862-1864 coin shortage. New York was the nation's commercial capital, with New York City alone producing hundreds of store card varieties from Broadway retailers to waterfront wholesalers. This copper striking (Fuld 105S-1a) is common among the known varieties. The token trade was competitive, with die sinkers in New York, Cincinnati, and other cities vying for merchant orders across the region. Between 1862 and 1864, Northern merchants produced millions of private tokens to compensate for the disappearance of federal coinage. Merchants in border states faced particular challenges during the coin shortage, as economic uncertainty and military activity disrupted normal commercial patterns more severely than in the interior. George and Melvin Fuld's catalog remains the standard reference for Civil War tokens, with each variety assigned a unique identification number.

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 1 cataloged varieties, Webster & Co. was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 105S-1a