British Co-op tokens denominated in bread

Started by redwine, December 30, 2014, 08:55:02 AM

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redwine

A 20/- Bread token  8)  That's a lot of bread!!
Brass
3.4g
22.3mm
O: .ROYAL ARSENAL COOPERATIVE. / SOCY LTD / 20/-
R: RL ARSENAL / BREAD / CO.OP SOCY / LTD

The rest are going to take some time..............
Always willing to trade.  See my profile for areas of interest.

redwine

#1
Bread tokens, the only varieties I have.
Added one more
Always willing to trade.  See my profile for areas of interest.

redwine

Ah, some Welsh tokens  8) 8) 8) 8)

. YNYSYBWL CO.OP.SOC. . LIMITED / LARGE / LOAF
. YNYSYBWL CO.OP.SOC. . LIMITED / SMALL / LOAF

Plastic
Consimilar
25.5 & 30mm
Always willing to trade.  See my profile for areas of interest.

malj1

There was a book written (Northamptonshire & The soke of Peterborough Tokens and Checks ISBN 978-1-908715-01-2 2012 Galeta) but unfortunately I only have scans of the machine tokens pages which are my main interest. [Monarch Auto Co.]
Malcolm
Have a look at  my tokens and my banknotes.

Figleaf

Luton is now best known for an airport frequented by el-cheapo airlines, but it used to be known for hat making. The industry declined steadily in the 20th century, which may be why there was a co-op in Luton. Aluminium, 29 x 23 mm; 1.61 grams.

Peter
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

africancoins

Perhaps more likely Luton had a co-op because they were about everywhere...

Nearly halfway down this page...


https://the-past.com/feature/shops-of-the-plainest-kind-the-architecture-of-englands-co-operative-movement/


...there is an image including a drawing of the Co-op's Luton factory.

I think the plural "Co-operative Wholesale Societies" (written on the building) means that the factory shown would have supplied many different co-operatives.

Thanks Mr Paul Baker

Figleaf

#6
I'd agree that this factory would supply a number of co-ops. There was also a Vauxhall car factory in Luton. However, you can't easily turn a hat maker into a factory hand. It takes at least half a generation (10 years) for the workforce to adapt, longer in Luton's case because the hat making industry died a  protracted death over half a century. The unemployed who can't get another job are the clients of the co-op.

Great link! Thank you.

Peter
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

Figleaf

Daventry is another small town in Northamptonshire. Here is their contribution to the bread supply. Al, 25 - 27 mm, 1.15 gram. I guess "industrial" meant the issuer was a factory, servicing several communities. Rains Daventry 24.

Peter
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

Figleaf

You can find an Irchester milk token here, but Irchesterians were also interested in co-operative bread.

Rains Irchester 28, 30 mm, 2.3 grams, al.
Rains Irchester 29, 25 - 27 mm, 4.64 grams, bronze.

Peter
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

Figleaf

You can find Long Buckby milk token here, but Buckbians of all sizes were also interested in co-operative bread.

Rains 12, 28 mm, 1.53 grams, tinned iron.
Rains 20, 25 x 20 mm, 4.23 grams, brass

Rains says the second token has the shape of a slice of bread. That's more likely than my first impression: a headstone :)

Peter
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

Figleaf

The Northampton co-op was an amalgam of local co-op shops and factories, struggling against the onslaught of more efficient commercial shops. These tokens were made by a pro, Ardill Leeds. It shows.

Rains 44, 23 x 32 mm, 5.75 grams, bronze
Rains 45, 23 x 32 mm, 1.76 grams, aluminium

Peter
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

Figleaf

Wellingborough was another hotbed of co-op activities in Northampton. One of their milk tokens is here. Their are seven series, each with a distinctive legend. The word "industrial" indicates that factories existed for some time.

The Rains catalogue numbers are below the pictures.

Peter
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

Figleaf

#12
If you dislike being at the end of alphabetic lists, don't call your village Yardley. Footley is much better. :)

A milk token from Yardley Hastings is here.

Peter
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

andyg

Anyone know how these were used?

The co-op used to deliver bread (like milk)...
always willing to trade modern UK coins for modern coins from elsewhere....

FosseWay

Is it possible they were used as dividend tokens - that you received a token when you bought bread, rather than surrendering it?

This appears to be the case with many of the co-op tokens denominated in money - you'd get tokens equivalent to the value of your shopping which you then presented at the dividend payout against the percentage payout for that year.

The thing with bread compared to other goods is that it was probably baked on-site by co-op bakers. The economics behind it may therefore have been different compared to canned goods, meat, veg, household goods that the co-op bought from outside, so the dividend setup was kept separate from the rest.

Completely blue-sky thinking for which I haven't a shred of evidence - just an idea  :)