Civil War token

In response, many merchants turned to private minters to fill the void left by the hoarded coins.

It is estimated that by 1864, there were 25,000,000 Civil War tokens (nearly all redeemable for one cent) in circulation, consisting of approximately 7,000–8,000 varieties.

They served as store cards (advertisements) for Lindenmueller and he had more than one million of these one-cent tokens struck and placed into circulation in 1863.

While the act is most remembered for the introduction of the phrase "In God We Trust" on the newly created two-cent piece, it also effectively ended the usage of Civil War tokens.

[4] The new one-cent piece was much closer in weight to the Civil War tokens, and found greater acceptance among the public.

[5] While the Coinage Act made Civil War tokens impractical, the issue of their legality was decided on June 8, 1864, when Congress enacted 18 U.S.C.

§ 486, which made the minting and usage of non-government issued coins punishable by a fine of up to $2,000, (~$31,717 in 2023) a prison term of up to five years, or both.

Some of the images found on patriotic tokens were the flag of the United States, a 19th-century cannon, and the USS Monitor.

The quote found its way to a number of patriotic tokens, albeit with a slightly modified wording ("haul down" is usually replaced by "tear it down").

[10] Civil War store cards advertised the name and/or location of privately owned businesses.

Civil war tokens were minted using a variety of materials, copper being a common choice (often actually bronze).