(1863) Copper Civil War Store Card F-690B-1a, Frank Hendry OH

Coin Details

Auction Record

$264 MS63BN 11-18-2020 Stack's Bowers

Description

Fuld 690B-1a — store card of Frank Hendry, Oberlin, Ohio. Ohio produced more varieties of Civil War store cards than any other state, driven by Cincinnati's role as the largest inland city and a Union Army supply hub. This copper striking (Fuld 690B-1a) is common among the known varieties. Die sinkers produced these tokens on hand-operated screw presses, often filling orders for multiple merchants simultaneously. Federal coinage vanished from circulation after 1861 as citizens hoarded silver and copper for their metal value, leaving merchants to fill the void with tokens. Civil War tokens circulated alongside postage currency, fractional currency notes, and encased postage stamps as substitutes for the federal coins that had disappeared from commercial channels. The Fuld catalog documents thousands of distinct die combinations for Civil War store cards, making this one of the most complex series in American numismatics.

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, Frank Hendry was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 690B-1a