(1863) Copper Civil War Store Card F-200D-8a, S.T. Martin OH

Coin Details

Auction Record

$132 XF40BN 11-18-2020 Stack's Bowers

Description

Fuld 200D-8a — store card of S.T. Martin, Columbus, Ohio. As Ohio's capital, Columbus saw enormous wartime military activity, and its merchants issued tokens to facilitate commerce amid the acute coin shortage. S.T. Martin issued 9 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. The copper composition of this variety (Fuld 200D-8a) is common for this merchant. 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. The Act of April 22, 1864 effectively ended private coinage by imposing penalties of up to five years imprisonment and a $2,000 fine for producing unauthorized coins or tokens. 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 9 cataloged varieties, S.T. Martin was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 200D-8a