(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-750W-1do, OH

Coin Details

Description

Civil War store card from Ohio, cataloged as Fuld 750W-1do. The breadth of Ohio's Civil War token production reflects the state's diverse economy, from Cincinnati's river trade to Cleveland's Lake Erie shipping to interior manufacturing towns. This piece is an overstrike struck over a host coin, an 1863 Indian Head cent. Traces of the original design may be visible beneath the new impressions. Most Civil War store cards carry no date; this token was struck during the 1862-1864 coin shortage era. Die sinkers produced these tokens on hand-operated screw presses, often filling orders for multiple merchants simultaneously. The Civil War small change crisis generated the largest private coinage movement in American history, with merchants and die sinkers producing tokens for circulation. The copper-nickel composition gave these tokens the closest resemblance to federal coinage of any metal variant.

Rarity Notes

Copper-nickel strikings are moderately scarce compared to pure copper or brass versions. Overstrike varieties are generally scarcer than tokens struck on blank planchets, as they required sourcing and re-striking existing coins. With 4 cataloged varieties, this merchant was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 750W-1do