Merchant Tokens from Ceylon, Minn. USA

Good For	What	Alloy	Size	Shape	Name	link
5c	In Trade	Ni plated Brass	21.2mm	Round	Top Hat Cafe	token
5c	In Merchandise	Aluminum	27.3mm	Octagon	H. P. Andrews	tokens
10c	In Merchandise	Aluminum	27.3mm	Octagon	H. P. Andrews
25c	In Merchandise	Aluminum	27.1mm	Octagon	H. P. Andrews
50c	In Merchandise	Aluminum	26.9mm	Octagon	H. P. Andrews
5c	In Merchandise	Aluminum	22.5mm	Octagon	Prust & Boehne	tokens
10c	In Merchandise	Aluminum	22.5mm	Octagon	Prust & Boehne
50c	In Merchandise	Aluminum	28.5mm	Octagon	Prust & Boehne
$1.00	In Merchandise	Aluminum	33.3mm	Octagon	Prust & Boehne
5c	In Trade	Aluminum	22.3mm	Round	Rosenberg & Lenz	token
5c	In Trade	Aluminum	22.3mm	Round	L. R. Simon	token
5c	In Trade	Brass	21.2mm	Round	Dutchman's	tokens
5c	In Trade	Brass	21.2mm	Round	Dutchman's (Cup)
5c	In Trade	Brass	21.2mm	Round	Gus & Squiz (♦)	tokens
5c	In Trade	Brass	21.2mm	Round	Gus & Squiz
10c	In Trade	Brass	25.4mm	Round	Gus & Squiz
$1.00	In Trade	Brass	30.7mm	Round	Gus & Squiz
2½c	In Trade	Brass	21.0mm	Round	WM. Ditz & Son	token
5c	In Trade	Brass	21.2mm	Annular	Koenecke & Ditz	tokens
5c	In Trade	Brass	29.0mm	Round	K & D
50c	In Trade	Brass	29.0mm	Octagon	K. & D.
$1.00	With ¼Keg	Aluminum	32.0mm	Round	Ditz & Son	tokens
$1.20	With Case	Aluminum	32.0mm	Round	Ditz & Son
5c	In Trade	Brass	22.3mm	Round	R. F. Rautenkranz	token
5c	In Trade	Brass	22.3mm	Round	R & S Place	token
25c	In Merchandise	Aluminum	26.0mm	12Scallops	J. O. Querna	tokens
50c	In Merchandise	Aluminum	28.0mm	12Scallops	J. O. Querna
5c	In Trade	Aluminum	22.3mm	Round	Leo Nassen	token
35c	In Trade	Aluminum	23.6mm	Round	Ceylon Post 529	token
55c	In Trade	Blue Plastic	28.6mm	Round	Ceylon Legion Post#529	token
One	Drink	Wood	38.4mm	Round	Buke's Place	token

A list Merchant Tokens from Ceylon MN USA was first put online in 2004 based on data sent to me by Luke Johnson, the State cataloger for Minnesota. It had images for 18 tokens from 10 establishments. When I visited Ceylon MN in 2005 September I had been able to collect 14 tokens from 8 establishments. I loaned 9 of the rare tokens which are still on Display at the Ceylon Area Historical Society Museum in Ceylon Mn, USA

In 2007 Richard Greever of California, USA launched the tokencatalog.com website which over last 12 years has grown to list over half Million tokens from USA of which about 60% are GOOD FOR Tokens. About 10% of those are from Minnesota reflecting that this state has probably been better cataloged or issued lot more tokens than the average state of USA. About 1% of the Minnesota Tokens are from Martin County, of which about 10% or 31 tokens from Ceylon MN as of 2019 August, and are listed above. Images have been posted for all but two of them. In 2019 June I won the rare L.R.Simon 5¢ token on eBay and was motivated to update this website after 15 Years.

I was told by Rich Hartzog of exonumia.com that most 5c MN tokens are fairly common. slot machine tokens, from ca. 1930's.
I am told by Forrest Stevens that Slot Machine tokens are almost always round, the same size as the coin they have the value of (21.2mm for 5c, 24.3mm for 25c, etc), and usually made of brass or nickel-plated brass. Slot machine tokens may be "generic" or have the name of the slot machine, but rarely have the name of a person or a store.

According to Dick Grinolds, another major Minnesota collector, Tokens from Ceylon MN are not easy to find. In general most tokens did not survive, since they were destroyed when a store changed ownership and the new owner didn't want the old tokens return to be redeemed. Some from Ceylon MN, are rare with only few known to exist.

The book Ceylon A Capsule in Time 1900-2000 (CCT) published for the Ceylon Centennial in 2000 has a some information about the establishments and their owners mentioned on the tokens and have been included in the linked web-pages.

• Top Hat Cafe was purchased in 1946 by Ernie Thompson and turned it into Ceylon Variety Store.
• H. P. Andrews Grocery & General Store 1908-1943
  Mrs. Harry P. Andrews Grocery 1945-1949
  H.P. Andrews was appointed postmaster in Ceylon in 1904.
  H.P. Andrews, prominent merchant died at the age of 63 years in 1943.
  Henry Saggau bought the Andrews Store in 1945.
• Prust & Boehne 1909-1915
  Prust Market and Thompson's Grocery Store purchased in 1977 by Dave and Lorraine Origer and renamed in Dave's Corner Store
  5¢ Aluminum (Lost eBay Auction image)
  50¢ Aluminum (tokencatalog image)
  $1.00 Aluminum (Ceylon Historical Society Museum scan)
• Rosenberg & Lenz
• L.R.Simon
• Dutchman's Saloon sold by Bill and Marie Baumgartner in 1967 to Harold Huntley.
• Gus & Squiz. The Ceylon Hotel opened for Bussiness in 1937 under August (Gus) Saggau and Anna (Squiz) Gillin who married on 1938 January 27th and owned the Hotel until 1941 May when they moved to California (CCT P-26)
  Harry Broudt purchased the Ceylon Hotel in 1948
  5¢ Aluminum (tokencatalog image)
  10¢ Aluminum (tokencatalog image)
  
• Wm. Ditz & Son Saloon 1908-1917
  K.&D. - Herman Koenecke & Wm. Ditz Billiards 1917-1950
  Wm. Ditz Jr. Saloon & Billiards 1950-1951
  Ditz's Pool Hall
  Ditz Recreation (CCT p.26)
  2½¢ (Missed eBay Auction image)
  5¢ Brass Annular (lost eBay Auction image)
  5¢ Aluminium (tokencatalog image)
  50¢ Brass (Marlen Bents - scan)
  $1.00 Aluminium (tokencatalog image)
  $1.20 Aluminium (tokencatalog image)
• Rautenkranz Barber Shop and Billiard Hall was robbed in 1922
  5¢ Brass (tokencatalog image)
• R & S Place Reiman & Stenstrum Beverage & Bowling 1920
  5¢ Brass (Image needed)
• John O. Querna General Store & Jewelry 1914-1929
  Grocery & Meat Market 1937-1942
  25¢ Aluminum (tokencatalog image)
  50¢ Aluminum (Image Needed)
• Leo Nassen Billiards 1937-1938
  5¢ Aluminum (tokencatalog image)
  
• Ceylon Legion Post 529 1946-1996
  

To complete this online catalog I would greatly appreciate receiving from museums, collectors or dealers 300 dpi or higher scans or digital photographs of VF of better tokens not linked above.
Computer scans of the actual coins themselves outside any holder are preferred since that retains both the scale and perspective which is lost in Digital photographs. Scans from books and Auction catalogs are not as useful since they are printed at 150 dpi or less and most often in B&W.
Source will be acknowledged based on contributors preference.

Please E_mail any comments to me. Thanks.
Dr Kavan Ratnatunga coins.lakdiva.org.lk/ceylonmn/