(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-165EG-5B, OH

Coin Details

Description

Civil War merchant token bearing the name of O'Donoghue & Naish, located in Cincinnati, Ohio. 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. The 12 cataloged varieties for O'Donoghue & Naish indicate a notable level of token production. The brass composition of this variety (Fuld 165EG-5B) is common to somewhat scarce for this merchant. Most Civil War store cards carry no date; this token was struck during the 1862-1864 coin shortage era. The token trade was competitive, with die sinkers in New York, Cincinnati, and other cities vying for merchant orders across the region. Between 1862 and 1864, Northern merchants produced millions of private tokens to compensate for the disappearance of federal coinage. Brass was the second most common planchet material after copper, giving tokens a golden appearance.

Rarity Notes

Brass strikings are among the more available metal variants, though typically less common than copper. With 12 cataloged varieties, O'Donoghue & Naish was a notable token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 165EG-5B