(1864) Copper Civil War Store Card F-430B-2a, Bippus & Morgan IN

Coin Details

Auction Record

$168 AU58BN 11-18-2020 Stack's Bowers

Description

Bippus & Morgan, a Huntington merchant, issued this Civil War store card during the 1862-1864 coin shortage. Hoosier merchants in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, and smaller towns issued Civil War tokens reflecting Indiana's diverse commercial landscape. With 2 known varieties, Bippus & Morgan produced a modest number of token types. The copper composition of this variety (Fuld 430B-2a) is common for this merchant. Many Civil War tokens share common reverse dies, as die sinkers paired merchant-specific obverses with stock patriotic or advertising reverses. Congress banned private token issuance in April 1864, but before that, tokens like this one circulated freely as cent substitutes in Northern commerce. Over 25 million Civil War tokens were produced before Congress ended private coinage in April 1864, making them the largest private coinage movement in American history.

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 2 cataloged varieties, Bippus & Morgan was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 430B-2a