(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-370A-5A, IN

Coin Details

Description

Fuld 370A-5A — store card of E. & L. Small, Hagerstown, Indiana. Indiana was an important agricultural and manufacturing state, with merchants producing store cards as emergency currency when federal coinage was hoarded. E. & L. Small issued 9 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. This copper striking (Fuld 370A-5A) 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. The token trade was competitive, with die sinkers in New York, Cincinnati, and other cities vying for merchant orders across the region. The hoarding of federal coinage created an acute shortage of small change, prompting thousands of merchants to issue tokens as practical substitutes. Civil War store cards are collected both as numismatic items and as historical documents of wartime American commerce.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 9 cataloged varieties, E. & L. Small was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 370A-5A