(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-420B-1d, WI

Coin Details

Description

Civil War store card from Manitowoc, Wisconsin, cataloged as Fuld 420B-1d. 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. Struck in copper-nickel, this die combination (Fuld 420B-1d) is somewhat scarce. This undated piece entered commerce during the 1862-1864 period when millions of private tokens replaced vanished federal coinage. Token manufacturers struck pieces by the thousands, using hand-fed screw presses capable of producing several hundred tokens per hour. Civil War tokens addressed a practical problem: the wartime disappearance of federal small change made daily transactions nearly impossible without private substitutes. The copper-nickel composition gave these tokens the closest resemblance to federal coinage of any metal variant.

Rarity Notes

Copper-nickel strikings are moderately scarce compared to pure copper or brass versions. With 9 cataloged varieties, this merchant was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 420B-1d