(1864) Copper Civil War Store Card F-150G-4a, Ira Brown IL

Coin Details

Description

Ira Brown, based in Chicago, Illinois, produced this token as a cent substitute during the wartime coin shortage. Chicago's explosive growth as a railroad and commodity trading center made it Illinois' primary source of Civil War store cards. With 4 known varieties, Ira Brown produced a modest number of token types. Struck in copper, this die combination (Fuld 150G-4a) is common. Merchants typically ordered tokens from die-sinkers who maintained inventories of patriotic and advertising dies for rapid production. Congress banned private token issuance in April 1864, but before that, tokens like this one circulated freely as cent substitutes in Northern 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 4 cataloged varieties, Ira Brown was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 150G-4a