1875 Token NY-NY 149B White Metal David H. Lane

Coin Details

Description

This 1875 white metal token, cataloged as NY-NY 149B, was issued by or for David H. Lane of New York City. The NY-NY catalog designation identifies this within the standard reference for New York City merchant tokens and store cards. The 1875 date places this token in the Reconstruction era, when New York's commercial sector was recovering from the financial turmoil of the Panic of 1873, one of the most severe economic downturns of the nineteenth century. White metal provided an affordable alternative to copper or brass for token production, though the softer material was more prone to damage. David Lane's token documents one of the thousands of small businesses that constituted the commercial fabric of Gilded Age New York, a city undergoing rapid transformation through immigration, industrialization, and architectural modernization.

Rarity Notes

White metal, NY-NY 149B. Reconstruction era New York merchant token. White metal composition.

Cross References

NY-NY 149B; PCGS #786103; David H. Lane, New York, White Metal