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1 Cent - Buy Low Finer Foods Chicago, Illinois
| Issuer | Buy Low Finer Foods |
|---|---|
| Year | |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Dollar (1785-date) |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 1C 1C FOOD STAMP CREDIT SLIP Redeemable Only in Eligible Foods at BUY LOW FINER FOODS 8325 S. ASHLAND AVE. Chicago, Ill. 60620 ONE CENT Not Redeemable in U.S. Currency ONE CENT CREDIT SLIP 1C 1C |
| Reverse description | Plain yellow paper with an all-over basket-weave pattern underprint. A faint mirror-image impression of obverse text is visible through the paper, with no additional printed design elements. |
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| Comments |
Buy Low Finer Foods was a Chicago-area grocery chain that issued paper cent-denomination scrip for use as change tokens — a practice common among American retailers from the 1930s through the 1960s when coin shortages or penny-handling costs made small change impractical to manage at volume. These fractional notes circulated only within the issuing store's register system and were redeemable solely against future purchases, giving the retailer a float on every transaction.
Collectors pursue these as a subcategory of merchant scrip rather than government issue. Surviving examples are typically found in low grades — they were spent, not saved.