(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-175S-12A, OH

Coin Details

Description

Geo. Worthington & Co., based in Cleveland, Ohio, produced this token as a cent substitute during the wartime coin shortage. Cleveland was a major Lake Erie port and growing industrial center connected to Eastern markets by railroad and the Ohio & Erie Canal. The 17 cataloged varieties for Geo. Worthington & Co. indicate a notable level of token production. The copper composition of this variety (Fuld 175S-12A) is common for this merchant. The absence of a date is typical for Civil War tokens produced during the 1862-1864 emergency currency period. Merchants typically ordered tokens from die-sinkers who maintained inventories of patriotic and advertising dies for rapid production. Congress banned private token issuance in April 1864, but before that, tokens like this one circulated freely as cent substitutes in Northern commerce. Over 25 million Civil War tokens were produced before Congress ended private coinage in April 1864, making them the largest private coinage movement in American history.

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 17 cataloged varieties, Geo. Worthington & Co. was a notable token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 175S-12A