(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-225AY-2A, MI

Coin Details

Description

Merchant token from Messmore & Lucking of Detroit, Michigan, cataloged as Fuld 225AY-2A. Detroit was Michigan's largest city and a major manufacturing center, producing stoves, railroad equipment, and industrial goods for the Northern war effort. Messmore & Lucking issued 6 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. This copper striking (Fuld 225AY-2A) is common among the known varieties. 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. Many Civil War tokens survive in high grades because merchants and the public saved them as novelties, resulting in a better average preservation than contemporary federal coins.

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 6 cataloged varieties, Messmore & Lucking was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 225AY-2A