The interest of the Jewish community in the American Civil War has traditionally been minute, as most Jews who arrived came in long after the War had ended. For that reason, two rare American Civil War tokens issued during the war by a Jewish restaurant in New York City have raised much curiosity among collectors.
The 150-year-old tokens will be presented this week at the Kedem Auction House in Jerusalem.
The background of the minting of these tokens lies in the American Civil War, during which the state ran out of money as it consumed the existent stash. This prompted the private issuing of over 10,000 different types of tokens by a wide range of private merchants to fill the gap.
Jews at the time comprised less than one percent of the total population, making Jewish artifacts from the time rare and uncommon. Despite the fact many Jewish merchants issued tokens as many of the Jews worked in commerce, only the Felix Dining Saloon token had Hebrew letters, stating Kosher food was served.
Not only the Hebrew letters make these tokens special however; the reverse side of one of the token reveals the Union Shield and the legend “Constitution and the Union” while another shows an Indian surrounded by 13 stars, representing the USA, of course. This corresponds with the historical research which showed that the contemporary Jews identified almost completely with their neighbors, showing long-term and even post-War loyalty and patriotism with the North or South in accordance with where they lived. Thousands of Jews had fought in the war itself, the majority with the North, though Jews were also slave owners and even slave traders.
The Felix Dining Saloon, a Jewish restaurant in New York, was the one to issue the tokens. The token inscription reveals the saloon was at 256 Broadway, New York, today a residential building opposite to City Hall Park. It should not be surprising that such overt restaurants acted in New York at the time as the Napoleonic Wars (1803 – 1815) brought to a substantial immigration wave of Ashkenazi Jews to the city and communal aid societies were formed.
Meron Eren of the Kedem Auction House concludes that “Small and rare as these tokens might be, they bear the vibrancy of Jewish life in New York, which started already over 150 year ago up till today. The tokens declare on one side the proud Jewish identity, and on the other side – the profound affiliation to the American state and values.”