This listing is for the Hard Times Token: Specie Payments Suspended May Tenth 1837. This 1837 hard times token is a significant piece of American necessity money issued during the economic panic of the mid-nineteenth century. The side featuring the phoenix rising from flames carries the legend "substitute for shin plasters," a mocking term for the unreliable private paper currency of the era. The other side displays a wreath surrounding the date May 10, 1837, along with the inscription "Specie Payments Suspended," commemorating the exact day New York banks stopped redeeming paper notes for gold and silver coins. Struck in copper, with a size similar to a large cent, this specific token features a small hole at the top, which was a common historical practice, allowing the owner to wear the piece as a pendant or sew it into clothing for safekeeping. These tokens served both as essential small change for daily commerce and as a political statement against the banking policies that led to the financial crisis. Interesting Find!

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1837 Hard Times Token: Phoenix Rising "Substitute for Shin Plasters" - Hard Times Token: Specie Payments Suspended May Tenth 1837