(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-360A-2a, WI

Coin Details

Description

Store card of Mons. Anderson in LA Crosse, Wisconsin, struck during the 1862-1864 token era. Wisconsin was a growing frontier state with Milwaukee as its largest commercial center, and its merchants issued tokens as practical solutions to the coin shortage. With 4 known varieties, Mons. Anderson produced a modest number of token types. Struck in copper, this die combination (Fuld 360A-2a) is common. Civil War tokens rarely bear dates. This piece was struck during the 1862-1864 coin shortage, when merchants needed emergency small change. Professional die sinkers like John Stanton, Benjamin True, and William Bridgens supplied dies to merchants across the Northern states. Federal coinage vanished from circulation after 1861 as citizens hoarded silver and copper for their metal value, leaving merchants to fill the void with tokens. 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 4 cataloged varieties, Mons. Anderson was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 360A-2a