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

Coin Details

Description

Merchant token from Gruhlers of Cincinnati, Ohio, cataloged as Fuld 165E-6A. Cincinnati's position as a Union Army supply center and Ohio River trade hub made it a prolific source of Civil War tokens. John Stanton and other die sinkers based in the city produced dies for merchants across the Midwest. The 10 cataloged varieties for Gruhlers indicate a notable level of token production. The copper composition of this variety (Fuld 165E-6A) is common for this merchant. Although undated, this token was produced during the 1862-1864 period when federal coins disappeared from commerce. Many Civil War tokens share common reverse dies, as die sinkers paired merchant-specific obverses with stock patriotic or advertising reverses. Civil War tokens addressed a practical problem: the wartime disappearance of federal small change made daily transactions nearly impossible without private substitutes.

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 10 cataloged varieties, Gruhlers was a notable token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 165E-6A