(1864) Copper Civil War Store Card F-700G-4a, Weybosse RI

Coin Details

Auction Record

$168 AU53BN 01-12-2022 Stack's Bowers

Description

City Fruit Store, a Providence merchant, issued this Civil War store card during the 1862-1864 coin shortage. Providence was an important manufacturing center, particularly in textiles and jewelry. The city's merchants issued Civil War tokens to maintain daily commerce. City Fruit Store issued 6 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. Struck in copper, this die combination (Fuld 700G-4a) is common. Token manufacturers struck pieces by the thousands, using hand-fed screw presses capable of producing several hundred tokens per hour. Between 1862 and 1864, Northern merchants produced millions of private tokens to compensate for the disappearance of federal coinage. 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 6 cataloged varieties, City Fruit Store was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 700G-4a