(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-370G-2A, MI

Coin Details

Description

Merchant token from L.A. Merrill of Grand Rapids, Michigan, cataloged as Fuld 370G-2A. Grand Rapids was a growing commercial center in western Michigan, famous for its furniture manufacturing and lumber industry. With 2 known varieties, L.A. Merrill produced a modest number of token types. Struck in copper, this die combination (Fuld 370G-2A) is common. The absence of a date is typical for Civil War tokens produced during the 1862-1864 emergency currency 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. Many Civil War tokens survive in high grades because merchants and the public saved them as novelties, resulting in a better average preservation than contemporary federal coins.

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 2 cataloged varieties, L.A. Merrill was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 370G-2A