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

Coin Details

Description

Civil War store card issued by C.L. Crosby of Detroit, Michigan. Detroit was Michigan's largest city and a major manufacturing center, producing stoves, railroad equipment, and industrial goods for the Northern war effort. C.L. Crosby issued 6 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. This copper striking (Fuld 225S-2A) is common among the known varieties. The absence of a date on this token is standard for the 1862-1864 era, when speed of production mattered more than formality. Token production was a specialized trade — die sinkers maintained catalogs of stock dies that merchants could pair with custom obverses. Store cards circulated as emergency currency after wartime hoarding removed federal coins from commercial channels. Civil War store cards are collected both as numismatic items and as historical documents of wartime American commerce.

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, C.L. Crosby was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 225S-2A