(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-165AY-4D, OH

Coin Details

Description

Civil War store card from Ohio, cataloged as Fuld 165AY-4D. 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. The copper-nickel composition of this variety (Fuld 165AY-4D) is somewhat scarce for this merchant. Although undated, this token was produced during the 1862-1864 period when federal coins disappeared from commerce. Die sinkers offered merchants a choice of metals, with copper being cheapest and most common, while silver and gold were struck for collectors. Between 1862 and 1864, Northern merchants produced millions of private tokens to compensate for the disappearance of federal coinage. The copper-nickel composition gave these tokens the closest resemblance to federal coinage of any metal variant.

Rarity Notes

Copper-nickel strikings are moderately scarce compared to pure copper or brass versions. With 9 cataloged varieties, this merchant was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 165AY-4D