(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-165DD-1B, OH

Coin Details

Description

Civil War-era store card from Leavitt & Bevis, a Cincinnati, Ohio business. Known as the "Queen of the West," Cincinnati served as a major Ohio River commercial hub. Its merchants produced hundreds of store card varieties during the 1862-1864 coin shortage. The 18 cataloged varieties for Leavitt & Bevis indicate a notable level of token production. The brass composition of this variety (Fuld 165DD-1B) is common to somewhat 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. The token era ended when Congress authorized new federal small-denomination currency and criminalized private token production in 1864. The brass composition gives this token a warm golden tone that contrasts with the reddish-brown of copper strikings.

Rarity Notes

Brass strikings are among the more available metal variants, though typically less common than copper. With 18 cataloged varieties, Leavitt & Bevis was a notable token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 165DD-1B