(No Date) Brass Civil War Store Card F-690A-1b, Pen Depot TN

Coin Details

Description

Store card of Pen Depot in Tennessee, struck during the 1862-1864 token era. Tennessee was divided during the Civil War. Nashville fell to Union forces in 1862, and merchants in Union-controlled areas issued tokens as emergency small change. Struck in brass, this die combination (Fuld 690A-1b) is common to somewhat scarce. Most Civil War store cards carry no date; this token was struck during the 1862-1864 coin shortage era. Merchants typically ordered tokens from die-sinkers who maintained inventories of patriotic and advertising dies for rapid production. Merchant-issued tokens circulated as substitutes for scarce federal coinage throughout the Northern states between 1862 and 1864. Brass was the second most common planchet material after copper, giving tokens a golden appearance. After Congress banned private coinage in 1864, surviving tokens became instant collectibles, with serious collecting beginning within a decade of the war's end.

Rarity Notes

Brass strikings are among the more available metal variants, though typically less common than copper. With 1 cataloged varieties, Pen Depot was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 690A-1b