(No Date) Copper Civil War Store Card F-860B-2a, Blowney & Johnson IN

Coin Details

Auction Record

$312 MS62BN 05-29-2019 Stack's Bowers

Description

Civil War store card issued by Blowney & Johnson of South Bend, Indiana. Indiana was an important agricultural and manufacturing state, with merchants producing store cards as emergency currency when federal coinage was hoarded. With 3 known varieties, Blowney & Johnson produced a modest number of token types. This copper striking (Fuld 860B-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. Professional die sinkers like John Stanton, Benjamin True, and William Bridgens supplied dies to merchants across the Northern states. Federal coinage vanished from circulation after 1861 as citizens hoarded silver and copper for their metal value, leaving merchants to fill the void with tokens. 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 3 cataloged varieties, Blowney & Johnson was a limited producer of Civil War tokens.

Cross References

Fuld 860B-2a