(1864) Gilt Civil War Store Card F-750L-1k, Baker-363B, - Great Central Fair OH

Coin Details

Description

Baker-363B, - Great Central Fair of Ohio issued this Civil War store card during the 1862-1864 coin shortage. 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. Struck in gilt, this die combination (Fuld 750L-1k) is common. 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. Many Civil War tokens survive in high grades because merchants and the public saved them as novelties, resulting in a better average preservation than contemporary federal coins.

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 1 cataloged varieties, Baker-363B, - Great Central Fair was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 750L-1k