(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-510K-1a, WI

Coin Details

Description

This Civil War token was issued by Joseph Fischbein, operating in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Milwaukee's thriving German-American merchant community made it the center of Wisconsin's Civil War token production. With 3 known varieties, Joseph Fischbein produced a modest number of token types. This copper striking (Fuld 510K-1a) is common among the known varieties. 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. Between 1862 and 1864, Northern merchants produced millions of private tokens to compensate for the disappearance of federal coinage. The cent-sized format was chosen deliberately to match the federal Indian Head cent, the coin most conspicuously absent from daily 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 3 cataloged varieties, Joseph Fischbein was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 510K-1a