(No Date) Copper Civil War Store Card F-995B-2a, H.G.C. Cary OH

Coin Details

Description

H.G.O. Cary of Ohio issued this Civil War store card during the 1862-1864 coin shortage. Ohio's extensive commercial networks across dozens of cities generated an unparalleled body of merchant token issues during the 1862-1864 coin shortage. H.G.O. Cary issued 6 die varieties, more than most Civil War merchants. The copper composition of this variety (Fuld 995B-2a) is common for this merchant. This undated token was struck circa 1862-1864 during the wartime coin shortage. Token production was a specialized trade — die sinkers maintained catalogs of stock dies that merchants could pair with custom obverses. Merchant-issued tokens circulated as substitutes for scarce federal coinage throughout the Northern states between 1862 and 1864. After Congress banned private coinage in 1864, surviving tokens became instant collectibles, with serious collecting beginning within a decade of the war's end.

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 6 cataloged varieties, H.G.O. Cary was a minor token issuer.

Cross References

Fuld 995B-2a