(No Date) Civil War Store Card F-900A-3A, MI

Coin Details

Description

Civil War-era store card from I. Allen & Son, a Schl.craft, Michigan business. Michigan's merchants across numerous cities actively produced tokens to combat the small change shortage affecting Northern commerce. With 3 known varieties, I. Allen & Son produced a modest number of token types. This copper striking (Fuld 900A-3A) is common among the known varieties. Undated Civil War tokens like this one circulated alongside dated issues during the 1862-1864 period. 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 3 cataloged varieties, I. Allen & Son was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 900A-3A