(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-40B-1B, MI

Coin Details

Description

Civil War-era store card from Dean & Co., an Ann Arbor, Michigan business. Michigan's merchants across numerous cities actively produced tokens to combat the small change shortage affecting Northern commerce. The 17 cataloged varieties for Dean & Co. indicate a notable level of token production. Struck in brass, this die combination (Fuld 40B-1B) is common to somewhat scarce. This undated token was struck circa 1862-1864 during the wartime coin shortage. Token production was a specialized trade — die sinkers maintained catalogs of stock dies that merchants could pair with custom obverses. 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. Brass strikings are among the more available variants, though less common than copper. The cent-sized format was chosen deliberately to match the federal Indian Head cent, the coin most conspicuously absent from daily commerce.

Rarity Notes

Brass strikings are among the more available metal variants, though typically less common than copper. With 17 cataloged varieties, Dean & Co. was a notable token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 40B-1B