1/2 Penny Kent - Dover / W. Pitt

Issued during the peak of the provincial token craze, when small change had effectively vanished from circulation following years of Royal Mint neglect and the hoarding of regal copper. Dover's tradesmen and merchants required a practical solution, and token issuers filled the gap commercially — the Skidmore manufactory in London struck a significant portion of these Kentish pieces. William Pitt the Younger was Prime Minister at the time of issue, his popularity among merchant classes running high amid wartime economic pressures following the outbreak of conflict with Revolutionary France in 1793.