(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-175B-3A, IN

Coin Details

Description

Civil War store card issued by Harley & Linvill of Columbia, Indiana. Indiana was an important agricultural and manufacturing state, with merchants producing store cards as emergency currency when federal coinage was hoarded. With 4 known varieties, Harley & Linvill produced a modest number of token types. The copper composition of this variety (Fuld 175B-3A) is common 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. The token era ended when Congress authorized new federal small-denomination currency and criminalized private token production in 1864. Surviving specimens are tangible artifacts of the wartime monetary crisis that affected every commercial transaction in the Northern states.

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 4 cataloged varieties, Harley & Linvill was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 175B-3A