(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-225AS-2I, MI

Coin Details

Description

Civil War store card from Detroit, Michigan, cataloged as Fuld 225AS-2I. Detroit's growing industrial economy made it a significant source of Civil War tokens, with merchants across the city issuing pieces to maintain commerce. Struck in zinc, this die combination (Fuld 225AS-2I) is scarce. Civil War tokens rarely bear dates. This piece was struck during the 1862-1864 coin shortage, when merchants needed emergency small change. Token manufacturers struck pieces by the thousands, using hand-fed screw presses capable of producing several hundred tokens per hour. Civil War tokens addressed a practical problem: the wartime disappearance of federal small change made daily transactions nearly impossible without private substitutes. Zinc tokens corrode easily, and surviving examples in good condition are scarce. The cent-sized format was chosen deliberately to match the federal Indian Head cent, the coin most conspicuously absent from daily commerce.

Rarity Notes

Zinc strikings are relatively uncommon and prone to corrosion, making well-preserved examples particularly desirable. With 7 cataloged varieties, this merchant was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 225AS-2I