picture rules out tax, transportation, billiards, play money, fraternal, and others...
my references show nothing. idahotokens makes a very good point about it being 'pickers check'. he uses very good reasoning in all is posts! it may be early 20th century, say 1930's or before. there sure were a growing amount of jobs/companies in the agricultural industry in those years.
if you have a little time read on...if not the following has little value to this post.
the denomination is odd. but, because it is a maverick token even suggesting it is a denomination has little basis.
anyway, i want mention the following "not to imply i think it is lumber related" but rather just for the story's sake! hey, a decent story is not bad fact or fiction right?
the lumber industry used 4, 8, 20, 40, 80, 2.00, 4.00 as a way of discounting, by 20%, the early issuance of wages, before payday, to employees. this is how i understand the company was working the company store. if the employee was to later turn the token in for cash (or if someone else wanted to turn it into cash)they would receive face value. if they used it in trade for goods at the company store they would receive the full amount 5, 10, 25 and so on.
off subject even more but an interesting fact --- scrip began in the first place because mines were so isolated in the early days. payroll was hard to physically get to the mine. robberies and a general shortage of currency were the big issues. also, the companies used isolation as reason and discovered profit as motive. you can say the company store was needed...but history shows it wasn't a benefit of the job it was 'for profit.' in my mind it should have been a cost of doing business not 'a business' in itself!
(not to mention the company charging burial fee, rent, doctor fee...whether you used it or not). must have been the first form of health care! hunh? well, you can say rent was needed but there really wasn't any other option. pretty much a captured work force.
i understand the coal mines discounted scrip if the employee wanted to turn it back into cash. this was keeping the families from shopping in town. there is a story that employees at a coal mine were spending their scrip to get drinks from a local soda manufacturer in a nearby town. the retailer would discount the scrip at time of sale then take the scrip back to the mine and demand full redemption. he would then buy the sugar for his soda concoction, from the company store. even at the companies inflated prices this made it cheaper and more convenient to get the sugar.
if you've read this far don't blame me if you think you've wasted your time.
