(No Date) Copper-Nickel Civil War Patriotic Token F-287/417d, Silver Mine Token

Coin Details

Auction Record

$1,560 MS65 08-25-2021 Stack's Bowers

Description

Civil War patriotic token combining Fuld obverse die 287, a "SILVER MINE TOKEN" design, with reverse die 417 bearing a design featuring "America". These privately manufactured cent-sized tokens served as emergency coinage throughout the North from 1862 to 1864. Their production was an entrepreneurial response to the wartime disappearance of federal small change from everyday commerce. The copper-nickel composition — the same alloy used for federal Indian Head cents from 1857 to 1864 — makes this a particularly faithful imitation of official government coinage. Undated, but produced during the wartime token era of 1862-1864 when Americans hoarded federal coins and merchants turned to privately struck substitutes. The end of the token era came swiftly in 1864 when Congress authorized new small-denomination currency and criminalized private token production. Surviving specimens are tangible artifacts of a brief but remarkable chapter in American monetary history.

Rarity Notes

Fuld 287/417d. Die pairing: obverse 287, reverse 417. Copper-nickel is an uncommon composition for Civil War tokens. The Fuld rarity scale ranges from R-1 (over 5,000 known) to R-10 (unique); survival depends on the specific die combination, metal, and condition.

Cross References

Fuld 287/417d