(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-165AI-6A, OH

Coin Details

Description

J.N. Doniphan of Cincinnati issued this token as emergency currency during the Civil War coin shortage. Cincinnati was the largest inland city in antebellum America and a critical supply center for the Union Army, driving Ohio to produce more varieties of Civil War store cards than any other state. J.N. Doniphan issued 9 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. This copper striking (Fuld 165AI-6A) is common among the known varieties. The absence of a date on this token is standard for the 1862-1864 era, when speed of production mattered more than formality. Token production was a specialized trade — die sinkers maintained catalogs of stock dies that merchants could pair with custom obverses. Store cards circulated as emergency currency after wartime hoarding removed federal coins from commercial channels. Civil War store cards are collected both as numismatic items and as historical documents of wartime American commerce.

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, J.N. Doniphan was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 165AI-6A