(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-500K-1B, IN

Coin Details

Description

Civil War store card issued by Jones & Mosher's of Kendallville, Indiana. Indiana was an important agricultural and manufacturing state, with merchants producing store cards as emergency currency when federal coinage was hoarded. With 3 known varieties, Jones & Mosher's produced a modest number of token types. Struck in brass, this die combination (Fuld 500K-1B) is common to somewhat scarce. Civil War tokens rarely bear dates. This piece was struck during the 1862-1864 coin shortage, when merchants needed emergency small change. The dies for merchant tokens were usually cut by professional engravers who could produce a complete set in a matter of days. Civil War tokens addressed a practical problem: the wartime disappearance of federal small change made daily transactions nearly impossible without private substitutes. The brass composition gives this token a warm golden tone that contrasts with the reddish-brown of copper strikings.

Rarity Notes

Brass strikings are among the more available metal variants, though typically less common than copper. With 3 cataloged varieties, Jones & Mosher's was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 500K-1B