It is a curious fact that there is less known about many U.S. tokens of the 20th century than about most ancient and medieval coins. We are able to date coins minted 1,000, even 2,000 years ago more closely than a number of modern tokens, some users of which are still living. But it is this very opportunity for original research that attracts collectors of ancient, medieval, and Islamic coins to the study of modern tokens.

Token tracing is practically a hobby in itself, and more than one numismatist has commented that it is the greatest reward of token collecting. Usually old city directories are resorted to first, and reading them is an education in itself into how people lived at that time - what businesses they patronized, where they lived, what their occupations were, even what the rate of growth of the city was. But city directories are primarily useful for 19th century tokens; for more recent issues, Duns, Bradstreet's, and Dun & Bradstreet books are invaluable.