(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-165AC-1A, OH

Coin Details

Description

Civil War-era store card from Chas. Conroy, a Cincinnati, Ohio business. Cincinnati's position as a Union Army supply center and Ohio River trade hub made it a prolific source of Civil War tokens. John Stanton and other die sinkers based in the city produced dies for merchants across the Midwest. Chas. Conroy issued 9 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. Struck in copper, this die combination (Fuld 165AC-1A) is common. No date appears on this token, consistent with the rapid production practices of the 1862-1864 Civil War token boom. Die sinkers offered merchants a choice of metals, with copper being cheapest and most common, while silver and gold were struck for collectors. Civil War tokens addressed a practical problem: the wartime disappearance of federal small change made daily transactions nearly impossible without private substitutes.

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, Chas. Conroy was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 165AC-1A