(1863) Copper Civil War Store Card F-710A-2a, A.M. Davis IN

Coin Details

Description

Fuld 710A-2a — store card of A.M. Davis, New Paris, Indiana. Indiana was an important agricultural and manufacturing state, with merchants producing store cards as emergency currency when federal coinage was hoarded. With 3 known varieties, A.M. Davis produced a modest number of token types. This copper striking (Fuld 710A-2a) is common among the known varieties. Die sinkers offered merchants a choice of metals, with copper being cheapest and most common, while silver and gold were struck for collectors. Private tokens entered circulation after the suspension of specie payments in late 1861 drained small change from commerce. Merchants who issued tokens during the Civil War provided a critical public service by maintaining the ability to make change for routine purchases at a time when federal coinage had nearly vanished from everyday commerce. After Congress banned private coinage in 1864, surviving tokens became instant collectibles, with serious collecting beginning within a decade of the war's end.

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, A.M. Davis was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 710A-2a