(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-695A-1B, NY

Coin Details

Description

Civil War store card from New York, cataloged as Fuld 695A-1B. New York was the nation's commercial capital, with New York City alone producing hundreds of store card varieties from Broadway retailers to waterfront wholesalers. The brass composition of this variety (Fuld 695A-1B) 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. 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. Brass was the second most common planchet material after copper, giving tokens a golden appearance. The cent-sized format was chosen deliberately to match the federal Indian Head cent, the coin most conspicuously absent from daily commerce.

Rarity Notes

Brass strikings are among the more available metal variants, though typically less common than copper. With 7 cataloged varieties, this merchant was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 695A-1B