(1863) Nickel Civil War Store Card F-505A-1c, Mansfield OH

Coin Details

Description

Civil War store card issued by Mansfield of Ohio. The breadth of Ohio's Civil War token production reflects the state's diverse economy, from Cincinnati's river trade to Cleveland's Lake Erie shipping to interior manufacturing towns. With 2 known varieties, Mansfield produced a modest number of token types. The nickel composition of this variety (Fuld 505A-1c) is scarce for this merchant. Token production was a specialized trade — die sinkers maintained catalogs of stock dies that merchants could pair with custom obverses. Store cards circulated as emergency currency after wartime hoarding removed federal coins from commercial channels. Nickel tokens were produced in smaller quantities than the standard copper issues. Civil War store cards are collected both as numismatic items and as historical documents of wartime American commerce.

Rarity Notes

Nickel strikings are generally scarcer than copper or brass versions, as nickel was more expensive and harder to strike. With 2 cataloged varieties, Mansfield was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 505A-1c