(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-630N-2B, NY

Coin Details

Description

Civil War store card from New York, cataloged as Fuld 630N-2B. 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. The brass composition of this variety (Fuld 630N-2B) is common to somewhat scarce for this merchant. Most Civil War store cards carry no date; this token was struck during the 1862-1864 coin shortage era. Many Civil War tokens share common reverse dies, as die sinkers paired merchant-specific obverses with stock patriotic or advertising reverses. Civil War tokens addressed a practical problem: the wartime disappearance of federal small change made daily transactions nearly impossible without private substitutes. Brass was the second most common planchet material after copper, giving tokens a golden appearance.

Rarity Notes

Brass strikings are among the more available metal variants, though typically less common than copper. With 9 cataloged varieties, this merchant was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 630N-2B