(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-765V-3a, PA

Coin Details

Description

Civil War merchant token bearing the name of Frank Snyder, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania was the Union's industrial heartland, with Philadelphia as a manufacturing center and Pittsburgh as an iron and steel producer. With 4 known varieties, Frank Snyder produced a modest number of token types. The copper composition of this variety (Fuld 765V-3a) 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. Many Civil War tokens survive in high grades because merchants and the public saved them as novelties, resulting in a better average preservation than contemporary federal coins.

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 4 cataloged varieties, Frank Snyder was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 765V-3a