CIVIL WAR TOKEN ENGRAVERS INFORMATION SOUGHT

Dave Bowers on behalf of the Civil War Token Society is nearing completion of a manuscript, Engravers and Minters of Civil War Tokens. Unlike certain other areas of American numismatics—colonial and early American copper coins being examples—much about the engravers of Civil War tokens and their mintage and distribution is unknown, this being especially true for some of the more obscure artisans and shops.

Dave is seeking biographical and numismatic information on these engravers in particular:

Louis Roloff, of New York City, who made and signed many tokens. Little is known about his biography—place of birth, time of death, education, family, and the like.

V.R. Allen and Charles Ulrick (or Ulrich). These two engravers were mentioned by Henry Clay Ezekiel in “Cincinnati’s Civil War Tokens,” The Numismatist, July 1911. Ezekiel lived in Cincinnati, and during the Civil War he paid frequent visits to the shops of Lanphear, Stanton, and others and, presumably, say Allen and Ulrick engaged in engraving. Allen was a stencil maker, but nothing has been found about his activities in Cincinnati 1861-1865. Ulrick remains a complete mystery.

Mossin & Marr in Milwaukee and F.C. Key & Son in Philadelphia were well-known in their time and made tokens during the Civil War. It seems that slightly after the war, John Marr on his own and F.C. Key & Sons acquired dies made by other shops and made restrikes and mulings of them. Does anyone have any information about these.

In Baltimore the Shakespeare Club was active by 1866 and held meetings in Bellevue Gardens on West Baltimore Street in Baltimore, a pleasure ground that was home for picnics, military unit rallies, and more. The Mount Vernon Club issued tokens that were similar in design. Does anyone have any information about the activities of either during the years 1861 to 1865?

A first-class mystery surrounds the pieces lettered SILVER MINE TOKEN and COPPER MINE TOKEN combined with various other dies, included a Capped Bust portrait die of 1860. These dies were later in the hands of A.W. Escherich, by which time they had rim breaks. Does anyone know about the origin of either?

Also, if anyone has invoices by which merchants and others ordered tokens in quantity during the Civil War these would desirable to see.

Your “reward” is appreciation by Dave and a credit in the book. Contact: Dave Bowers, qdbarchive@metrocast.net .

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