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

Coin Details

Description

Civil War merchant token bearing the name of Frank Smith, located in Cincinnati, Ohio. 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. Frank Smith issued 9 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. Struck in copper, this die combination (Fuld 165FR-5A) is common. 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 9 cataloged varieties, Frank Smith was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 165FR-5A