(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-150A-1I, OH

Coin Details

Description

Bartlett Goble & Co, based in Chestervil, Ohio, produced this token as a cent substitute during the wartime 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. Bartlett Goble & Co issued 6 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. The zinc composition of this variety (Fuld 150A-1I) is scarce for this merchant. This undated piece entered commerce during the 1862-1864 period when millions of private tokens replaced vanished federal coinage. Token manufacturers struck pieces by the thousands, using hand-fed screw presses capable of producing several hundred tokens per hour. Civil War tokens addressed a practical problem: the wartime disappearance of federal small change made daily transactions nearly impossible without private substitutes. Zinc tokens corrode easily, and surviving examples in good condition are scarce.

Rarity Notes

Zinc strikings are relatively uncommon and prone to corrosion, making well-preserved examples particularly desirable. With 6 cataloged varieties, Bartlett Goble & Co was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 150A-1I