(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-270A-4A, OH

Coin Details

Description

Merchant token from D. Farnham & Co. of Edgerton, Ohio, cataloged as Fuld 270A-4A. Ohio's extensive commercial networks across dozens of cities generated an unparalleled body of merchant token issues during the 1862-1864 coin shortage. D. Farnham & Co. issued 6 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. The copper composition of this variety (Fuld 270A-4A) is common for this merchant. This undated piece entered commerce during the 1862-1864 period when millions of private tokens replaced vanished federal coinage. Professional die sinkers like John Stanton, Benjamin True, and William Bridgens supplied dies to merchants across the Northern states. The Civil War small change crisis generated the largest private coinage movement in American history, with merchants and die sinkers producing tokens for circulation. The cent-sized format was chosen deliberately to match the federal Indian Head cent, the coin most conspicuously absent from daily 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, D. Farnham & Co. was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 270A-4A