(1863) Copper Civil War Store Card F-505B-2d, GW-579 Ni F.B. Orr Civil War

Coin Details

Auction Record

$2,160 MS66 11-18-2019 Stack's Bowers

Description

Civil War token cataloged as Fuld 505B-2d, featuring a George Washington medal or token (GW-579). The Fuld catalog's Location Unknown section encompasses die combinations that bear no identifiable merchant attribution. These tokens circulated on the strength of their patriotic designs alone. Copper was preferred for token production because its properties matched the federal cent specification closely enough that these pieces passed freely in commerce during 1862-1864. Dated 1863, the peak year of Civil War token production when the coin shortage was most acute. The end of the token era came in 1864 when Congress authorized new small-denomination currency and criminalized private token production. Die sinkers in major cities competed fiercely for merchant orders, offering stock reverses that could be paired with custom obverse dies featuring the merchant's name and business information. Surviving specimens are tangible artifacts of wartime monetary history.

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, GW-579 Ni F.B. Orr Civil War was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 505B-2d