Coins Stamped with Advertising: a Forgotten Chapter of Nineteenth Century Midwestern History

Coins Stamped with Advertising: A Forgotten Chapter of Nineteenth Century Midwestern History Gregory G. Brunk Over one hundred years ago in the United the 1870s that it needed to produce few additional States, it was common for merchants to stamp their pieces for circulation during the 1880s. In fact, so names and advertising slogans on coins. Probably many silver dollars had been struck during the late about five percent of all coins that circulated during 1870s that unopened bags of these coins-never the 1850s were so stamped (Brunk, 1990). Many having been needed for circulation-were found in pieces were foreign silver coins, particularly the the Mint almost one hundred years later, and were quarter-size "two reales" or "two bits" minted in distributed to the public during the 1970s through the Spanish colonies of the New World. These sales handled by the General Accounting Office. Spanish American silver coins were American legal This odd historical circumstance of a decline tender until 1857, when the government began their in the production and circulation of newly minted withdrawal from circulation. coins by the late 1870s is unfortunate. It is difficult Many Spanish American coins circulating in to establish the date of any numismatic attribute, the United States had struck upon them advertising in this case an advertising mark, unless a large marks of merchants. Because of the inflation caused number of specimens are extant (Casey, 1986). The by the Civil War, which led the Confederacy, various chief method of estimating the issue date of states, municipalities, local banks and individual merchant advertising stamps is by examining the merchants to issue paper money, all types of silver latest date coin so stamped (see the literature on coins had a great premium over paper money during ancient coins, where this problem has been the early 1860s. Thus, most of the silver coins discussed extensively, e.g., Grunwald, 1946; stamped with advertising that had not been Thompson, 1954; Kraay, 1962; Buttrey, 1970, Baker withdrawn by the government were melted by 1984; Howgego, 1985). private individuals during the war. Until recently The more specimens of a stamp that are traced, such pieces have been considered to be "mutilated" the more certain one can be in estimating its date coins, and since they had no value to coin collectors, of issue, but this approach does not work well for many more were destroyed during the "great silver American advertising stamps struck after the early melt" of the 1970s when the price of silver hit an 1870s because so few later date coin reached general astronomical value because of the market manip- circulation in the succeeding decade. Since we can ulation of the Hunt brothers. only date advertising marks stamped upon coins Following the Civil War, merchants again based upon the date of the coins used for stamping, turned to stamping coins, but they now stamped we can state with certainty that advertising coins almost exclusively United States coins. All were extensively used in the United States until the denominations of coins were stamped, including late 1870s, but we are uncertain if the practice was a few gold pieces; but the most commonly utilized important after this time. Although a few North coins were half dollars, quarters, dimes, nickels, American advertising marks on coins are known "small cents" of the same size as today's pennies, to have been struck up until the First World War, and the old "large cents" that last were minted in most of the dated later issues are from Canada 1857. Also used were the now obsolete "two cent (Brunk, 1988). piece," "three cent piece," and "half dime," which ceased to be produced during the 1870s. Private Token Coinages Because of the strong political movement for Scattered examples of private coinages are the free coinage of silver that followed discovery known from ancient times (Rostovtsev and Prou, of major silver deposits in the West, the United 1899). Some were issued for religious celebrations, States Mint produced so many silver coins during others for the various Roman games. All are rare. Journal of American Culture The idea of advertising using such "coins" became By the end of the eighteenth century, the common in England well before the Industrial Industrial Revolution had affected much of Revolution. Private "token" coinages in pewter and England and Scotland. One aspect of this economic lead made an appearance in the British Isles by the transformation was that heavy machinery and end of the twelfth century. Again, the first of these quality tools began to be seen in even some remote were struck for religious festivals, particularly those areas, particularly near rivers since plentiful water of the "Boy Bishop" celebration at Bury St. attracted the attention of mill entrepreneurs. Edmunds (Caldecott, 1936;Rigold, 1978). Gradually Various artisans now started to mark their names a transition occurred and the pieces clearly began on the minor regal coins that the Crown issued to advertise the products, services, and locations of during the eighteenth century, but still such official merchants. coins were not issued in great enough numbers to By the seventeenth century, traveling token alleviate local shortages. Private coins remained makers were crossing England offering their skills common. Although many different types of to all local merchants. Such talents were in desperate merchants stamped British coins in the eighteenth need because the Crown never showed much interest and nineteenth centuries, the most common marks in providing a sufficient minor coinage of copper were struck by cutlers (Brunk, 1989b). This pattern or brass, and serious shortages of small change is not too different from the American experience always plagued the economy, not only in the small where the most common marks were struck by towns, but also in the major cities. The seventeenth- silversmiths (Brunk, 1987). Both English and century English tradesmen tokens differed little from the few regal minor coins that were in American merchants commonly had stock stamps circulation. The distinction between coin and token that they used to mark their products, and only is just a matter of governmental sanction, and this as an after thought were such stamps used to mark distinction often meant little to the common man. advertising on coins. Coins have such sanction, while tokens do not; in These stamped coins provided an efficient and all other respects they may be identical. cheap form of advertisement in a period when The number of these early merchant tokens posted bills, symbolic signs in front of one's from the British Isles is immense (Williamson, establishment, and word of mouth were the best 1889), and they have a close parallel to United States ways to publicize one's goods and services. A wide "Hard Times Tokens" of the 1830sand "Civil War" variety of slogans are found on the British coins tokens of the 1860s. Both of the latter series were of the period, including "Abbey, Bedford, Cutler," the size of American cents and were issued by "B.Hall, Glazier & Glass Bender," "Cark Cotton merchants in most areas of the North and by Works, 1787", "Warburton, Surgeon, 85 Portland tradesmen in a few cities of the South. All three Street, Manchester," "John Thomas, Cutler, 104 series often show interesting symbols of various Blackman Street, Boro," and perhaps the most occupations, like a pipe for a tobacconist, a fish unusual of them all: "Tho. Moore, Rat Killer, for a fishmonger, or a beer barrel for brewer. They Beverly, 1800" (Scott, 1975; Brunk, 1989b). also had a legend that identified their issuer. A Many of the late eighteenth-century Scottish typical English piece was issued by the Mayor of tradesmen marks were more than just advertising Cambridge, portrays Oliver Cromwell and reads, placed upon any coin that might be found in "Iohn Lowry of Cambridg, His Halfe Peny, 1657." circulation-they had a monetary purpose as well. Another shows a ship and states "Elizabeth Because of the discovery of large silver deposits in Thompson in Hull 1669, Her Half Penny." the Spanish colonies of the New World, the British Isles were flooded with "eight reales." Some of these ~ I.), q~ j'Q d~J/I~~O~,~, ~.\J> Spanish silver dollars had been captured by English ,1'1. ~;tP i.>i privateers, while others flowed into England as a ~P.:J.:-:~~~ .I'.:J..~ result of commerce. As they had not been issued This is a merchant's halfpenny token from Hull in Yorkshire, by the Crown, they were valued only as bullion- England. The piece was issued by Elizabeth Thompson in 1666. unless they were given some additional mark of It likely is the work of a traveling token maker, who moved authorization by the government or a private from town to town offering to make halfpennies and farthings merchant (Kelly, 1976). for merchants in order to alleviate the chronic shortage of small change that plagued the British Isles until the late 18th century. Not only did such tokens lessen day to day problems encountered in commercial transactions, but proved to be good advertising. The only monetary mark of the Scottish type issued in the United States was struck by the banking firm of Puech-Bein of New Orleans. It must have been issued shortly after the city was acquired from France since it retained the French spelling "Nouvelle Orleans" (Byrne, 1975; Brunk, 1987: 131- 132). These Louisiana bankers sold "cut" coins to Caribbean island governments, where fractions of During the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries many Scottish mill owners and other tradesmen stamped Spanish silver dollars were stamped with an island symbol American silver dollars with marks to stabilize their value, as in order to tariff them at much higher than their such pieces were not legal tender in the British Isles, but bullion value.

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