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

Coin Details

Description

L. Phil Meredith & J.N. M'Clung of Ohio issued this token as emergency currency during the Civil War. Ohio produced more varieties of Civil War store cards than any other state, driven by Cincinnati's role as the largest inland city and a Union Army supply hub. With 2 known varieties, L. Phil Meredith & J.N. M'Clung produced a modest number of token types. This copper striking (Fuld 165DN-1A) is common among the known varieties. Like the majority of Civil War store cards, this token is undated, produced during the acute 1862-1864 small change crisis. Token manufacturers struck pieces by the thousands, using hand-fed screw presses capable of producing several hundred tokens per hour. Between 1862 and 1864, Northern merchants produced millions of private tokens to compensate for the disappearance of federal coinage. Token production peaked in 1863 when the coin shortage was most acute, with die sinkers working around the clock to fill merchant orders.

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 2 cataloged varieties, L. Phil Meredith & J.N. M'Clung was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 165DN-1A