(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-120A-2A, IN

Coin Details

Description

Re O.H.P. Ash's, a Bowlinggrn 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. Re O.H.P. Ash's issued 9 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. This copper striking (Fuld 120A-2A) is common among the known varieties. This undated token was struck circa 1862-1864 during the wartime coin shortage. Token production was a specialized trade — die sinkers maintained catalogs of stock dies that merchants could pair with custom obverses. Congress banned private token issuance in April 1864, but before that, tokens like this one circulated freely as cent substitutes in Northern commerce. 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

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 9 cataloged varieties, Re O.H.P. Ash's was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 120A-2A