Im interested in coins that really make me feel connected to the people of the past. I really like Love Tokens because of that but I want to widen my area of collecting. Recently Ive seen some cool Hard Times Tokens that have somewhat the same personal feeling. I like the ones that stores issued (Store card tokens?) more than the Patriotic ones. I know there is a Red Book for Civil War Tokens where it helps label and classify each token and helps determine their rarity and value. Is there something like that for Hard Times Tokens? I might be interested in the Civil War Tokens too but they are a little small. I could get over that but the Hard Times tokens just feel a little cooler. I dont know maybe Im crazy. If anyone knows anything feel free to comment. Thanks!
The Standard Catalog of Hard Times Tokens Paperback – January 1, 2002 by Russell Rulau Most recent edition. Silly Amazon has it for $165. eBay has one for $18: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pb-HARD-TIM...t=Antiquarian_Collectible&hash=item5b033fca01
I think these are different editions. I would recommend the 2002 volume. It is the only work that identifies the manufacturers of the various varieties. I cannot fathom why this information was left out of the Standard Catalog.
I think I might look into more Civil War Tokens. The info seems much easier to get and a lot more variety
