(1864) Copper Civil War Store Card F-225F-6a, L.W. Barie MI

Coin Details

Auction Record

$288 MS63BN 09-21-2022 Stack's Bowers

Description

Merchant token from L.W. Barie of Detroit, Michigan, cataloged as Fuld 225F-6a. Detroit was Michigan's largest city and a major manufacturing center, producing stoves, railroad equipment, and industrial goods for the Northern war effort. The 11 cataloged varieties for L.W. Barie indicate a notable level of token production. The copper composition of this variety (Fuld 225F-6a) is common for this merchant. Token production was a specialized trade — die sinkers maintained catalogs of stock dies that merchants could pair with custom obverses. 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. Token production peaked in 1863 when the coin shortage was most acute, with die sinkers working around the clock to fill merchant orders.

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 11 cataloged varieties, L.W. Barie was a notable token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 225F-6a