(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-225BP-4A, MI

Coin Details

Description

Civil War-era store card from H.A. Sealy, a Detroit, Michigan business. Detroit was Michigan's largest city and a major manufacturing center, producing stoves, railroad equipment, and industrial goods for the Northern war effort. H.A. Sealy issued 8 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. This copper striking (Fuld 225BP-4A) is common among the known varieties. Undated Civil War tokens like this one circulated alongside dated issues during the 1862-1864 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. 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 8 cataloged varieties, H.A. Sealy was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 225BP-4A