(1863) Copper Civil War Store Card F-175F-1a, John C. Washburn IN

Coin Details

Description

Fuld 175F-1a — store card of John C. Washburn, Columbia, Indiana. Hoosier merchants in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, and smaller towns issued Civil War tokens reflecting Indiana's diverse commercial landscape. With 3 known varieties, John C. Washburn produced a modest number of token types. The copper composition of this variety (Fuld 175F-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. Many Civil War tokens survive in high grades because merchants and the public saved them as novelties, resulting in a better average preservation than contemporary federal coins.

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 3 cataloged varieties, John C. Washburn was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 175F-1a