(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-765Q-11d, PA

Coin Details

Description

Civil War merchant token bearing the name of John W. Pittock in Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania was the Union's industrial heartland, with Philadelphia as a manufacturing center and Pittsburgh as an iron and steel producer. The 15 cataloged varieties for John W. Pittock indicate a notable level of token production. Struck in copper-nickel, this die combination (Fuld 765Q-11d) is somewhat scarce. Like the majority of Civil War store cards, this token is undated, produced during the acute 1862-1864 small change crisis. 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. Copper-nickel strikings are moderately scarce, resembling the federal Indian Head cent in both size and color.

Rarity Notes

Copper-nickel strikings are moderately scarce compared to pure copper or brass versions. With 15 cataloged varieties, John W. Pittock was a notable token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 765Q-11d