(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-165CW-5A, OH

Coin Details

Description

Civil War store card from Cincinnati, Ohio, cataloged as Fuld 165CW-5A. 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. This copper striking (Fuld 165CW-5A) is common among the known varieties. Civil War tokens rarely bear dates. This piece was struck during the 1862-1864 coin shortage, when merchants needed emergency small change. Token manufacturers struck pieces by the thousands, using hand-fed screw presses capable of producing several hundred tokens per hour. The token era ended when Congress authorized new federal small-denomination currency and criminalized private token production in 1864. Many Civil War tokens survive in high grades because merchants and the public saved them as novelties, resulting in a better average preservation than contemporary federal coins.

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 17 cataloged varieties, this merchant was a notable token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 165CW-5A