(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-845B-1A, MI

Coin Details

Description

Civil War store card from Saginaw, Michigan, cataloged as Fuld 845B-1A. Michigan's merchants across numerous cities actively produced tokens to combat the small change shortage affecting Northern commerce. The copper composition of this variety (Fuld 845B-1A) is common for this merchant. Undated Civil War tokens like this one circulated alongside dated issues during the 1862-1864 period. Merchants typically ordered tokens from die-sinkers who maintained inventories of patriotic and advertising dies for rapid production. Store cards circulated as emergency currency after wartime hoarding removed federal coins from commercial channels. Civil War tokens circulated alongside postage currency, fractional currency notes, and encased postage stamps as substitutes for the federal coins that had disappeared from commercial channels. Token production peaked in 1863 when the coin shortage was most acute, with die sinkers working around the clock to fill merchant orders.

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 2 cataloged varieties, this merchant was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 845B-1A