Trade card of J.O. Simmons, "General Dealer in Plantation Supplies," St. Louis, Missouri, c. 1855. Enameled card. Supplies "delivered at any of the regular steamboat landings on the Mississippi river between St. Louis and Vicksburg." The Civil War would bring commerce on the Mississippi to a halt, and ultimately spell the demise of the South's plantation-based economy, which had been built on the backs of slaves. This rare card dates to the eve of the conflict. Remarkably, it has survived in mint condition.
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