(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-770D-2A, IN

Coin Details

Description

Civil War merchant token bearing the name of Tansey & Ballard, located in Plainfield, Indiana. Hoosier merchants in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, and smaller towns issued Civil War tokens reflecting Indiana's diverse commercial landscape. Tansey & Ballard issued 7 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. This copper striking (Fuld 770D-2A) is common among the known varieties. Like the majority of Civil War store cards, this token is undated, produced during the acute 1862-1864 small change crisis. Merchants typically ordered tokens from die-sinkers who maintained inventories of patriotic and advertising dies for rapid production. Congress banned private token issuance in April 1864, but before that, tokens like this one circulated freely as cent substitutes in Northern commerce. 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 7 cataloged varieties, Tansey & Ballard was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 770D-2A