(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-165Y-2A, OH

Coin Details

Description

Fuld 165Y-2A — store card of C.E. Clark's, 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 11 cataloged varieties for C.E. Clark's indicate a notable level of token production. Struck in copper, this die combination (Fuld 165Y-2A) is common. Most Civil War store cards carry no date; this token was struck during the 1862-1864 coin shortage era. Many Civil War tokens share common reverse dies, as die sinkers paired merchant-specific obverses with stock patriotic or advertising reverses. Congress banned private token issuance in April 1864, but before that, tokens like this one circulated freely as cent substitutes in Northern commerce. After Congress banned private coinage in 1864, surviving tokens became instant collectibles, with serious collecting beginning within a decade of the war's end.

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 11 cataloged varieties, C.E. Clark's was a notable token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 165Y-2A