(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-510L-3a, WI

Coin Details

Description

Fuld 510L-3a — store card of Wm. Frankfurth, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Milwaukee's thriving German-American merchant community made it the center of Wisconsin's Civil War token production. Wm. Frankfurth issued 5 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. Struck in copper, this die combination (Fuld 510L-3a) is common. Undated Civil War tokens like this one circulated alongside dated issues during the 1862-1864 period. The token trade was competitive, with die sinkers in New York, Cincinnati, and other cities vying for merchant orders across the region. The Civil War small change crisis generated the largest private coinage movement in American history, with merchants and die sinkers producing tokens for circulation. 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 5 cataloged varieties, Wm. Frankfurth was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 510L-3a