square 1 cent token

[allsmith]

found this while clearing out iron at one of my best sites to hunt,,so bummed i hit it darn near dead center with the shovel.. ,, but at least i got it . is it true to say that one cent tokens are rare,,and square ones too.. think it might have came from a steel mill near me,, not for sure though.. any info will be greatfully appreciated... thanks..

 

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[trk5capt]

Interesting Find, Congrats. trk5capt...

 

[idahotokens]

Nice find! Lipscomb's OH Merchant Tokens book lists it as from Mansfield, OH. Sounds like this may be in your neighborhood. There are two varieties of the 1¢ token listed - one with initials JGD below the 1¢ and another with initials G. K. A. for George K. Angelas. Lipscomb dates the first one as 1934-1935 and the second one as 1936-1955. There is a "set" of denominations known for the G. K. A. type - 1, 5, 10, and 50¢. He says each of the denominations for each of the initials is rarity R-2 but does not describe his interpretation of what that rarity means. Generally, though, the lower the rarity number, the more common the token. Best, John in ID

 

[allsmith]

thanks idahotokens!!!!!! great info..yeah i think its from the empire steel mill in mansfield ,ohio..it is the g.k.a. one.. wow!! that is a great book u got.. i was wondering what those letters under the 1 cent meant..but generally speaking is the 1 cent round and square tokens rarer than say round tokens of different denominations,,,cause ive looked on line and can find hundreds of round tokens ,,but when i put in the search for 1 cent or square token theres only like one or two...just wondering..maybee i should say ''made less of'' than saying ''rare''.. thank you very much for the info

 

[idahotokens]

Round tokens in general are much more commonly found than tokens of any other shape, regardless of denomination. I think there may have been a slight price differential at the time they were made - most makers offered various shapes, but the price generally was dependant on size and the metal used, rather than shape. I have seen a 1908 price list from the Salt Lake Stamp Co., maker of a lot of the tokens in my area. For their standard round token, they offered 5¢ or 10¢ size at $1.50 for the first hundred. 25¢ size was $1.75, 50¢ size was $2.00, and $1 size was $2.50.

They did not offer 1¢ denominations in their standard line as the price would have been over face value. That was usually the case, so 1¢ tokens are less common than higher denominations. Sort of like the problem the U. S. Mint is running into today with cents and nickels - seniorage has gone negative. In the past when this happened, there was a size or metal change before long. And it doesn't take long after that for all the old types to leave circulation to be hoarded or melted.

On the subject of the book - Lipscomb's Second edition of the OH token catalog is something worth having, especially if you live in or around OH. Check eBay or the new/used book sites on the Internet as there is usually one available. There is one on eBay right now. Even the first edition would be better than not having one.

John in ID

 

[allsmith]

ok now i see,, thanks so much for the great info!!! yeah that book would be great to have ..i have only found two tokens tectin,, but my dad just gave me a bunch of various tokens from the area,, be fun to research them all,, i found a round ''good for 5 cents at the bar '' token,, say ''D & M'' on the back .. does your book show that one?

thank you very much... allsmith

 

[idahotokens]

Unfortunately, maverick tokens with just initials are nearly impossible to attribute with any degree of certainty. I looked in the OH book, the database of mavericks of the Token and Medal Society and several of the other token collector groups, but came up empty. John in ID

 

[allsmith]

ok, no problem,, just thought i would ask.. since your the man with the plan ,, but i thank you very much for the help!!!!