(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-765P-6a, PA

Coin Details

Description

Fuld 765P-6a — store card of Pittock's, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania was the Union's industrial heartland, with Philadelphia as a manufacturing center and Pittsburgh as an iron and steel producer. Pittock's produced 27 cataloged die varieties, reflecting a substantial token operation. The copper composition of this variety (Fuld 765P-6a) is common 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. The cent-sized format was chosen deliberately to match the federal Indian Head cent, the coin most conspicuously absent from daily commerce.

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 27 cataloged varieties, Pittock's was a moderately active token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 765P-6a