(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-630AB-8B, NY

Coin Details

Description

Civil War store card from New York, cataloged as Fuld 630AB-8B. New York state generated the second-largest body of Civil War token issues, concentrated in New York City but extending to Albany, Troy, Buffalo, and smaller commercial centers. This brass striking (Fuld 630AB-8B) is common to somewhat scarce 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. 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 41 cataloged varieties, this merchant was a substantial producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 630AB-8B