Canadian pound
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The pound was the currency of Canada until 1858. It was subdivided into 20 shillings, each of 12 pence. In Lower Canada, the sou was used, worth ½ penny.
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[edit] History
Although initially based on the British pound, with some British coins circulating, the scarcity of British coins led to the widespread use of Spanish dollars. These were accommodated into the £sd by setting a valuation for these coins. In Canada, the Halifax rating dominated, setting the Spanish dollar equal to 5 shillings. As this was 6 pence more than its value in silver, the Canadian pound was consequently lower in value than sterling. The York rating of 1 Spanish dollar = 8 shillings was used in Upper Canada, officially until its outlawing in 1796, unofficially well into the 19th century.
In 1841, the Province of Canada adopted a new, gold standard. The pound was equal to 4 U.S. dollars (92.88 grains gold), with the gold sovereign equal to 1 pound 4 shillings 4 pence. Thus, the Canadian pound was worth 16 shillings 5.3 pence sterling. This system persisted until 1858, when the Province of Canada decimalized, with the Canadian dollar equal to the U.S. dollar or 5 shillings of the previous currency.
[edit] Coins
Both Upper Canada (Canada West, modern Ontario) and Lower Canada (Canada East, modern Québec) issued copper tokens. Between 1835 and 1852, the Bank of Montreal, the Banque de Peuple, the City Bank and the Quebec Bank issued 1 and 2 sou (½ and 1 penny) tokens for use in Lower Canada. The Bank of Upper Canada issued ½ and 1 penny tokens between 1850 and 1857.
[edit] Banknotes
On notes issued by the chartered banks, denominations were given in both dollars and pounds/shillings, with 1 dollar = 5 shillings. Many banks issued notes, starting with the Bank of Montreal in 1817. See Canadian chartered bank notes for more details. Denominations included 5, 10 and 15 shillings, 1, 1¼, 2½, 5, 12½ and 25 pounds. In addition, small value, "scrip" notes were issued in 1837, by the Quebec Bank, in denominations of 6 pence (12 sous), ¼ and ½ dollar, and by Arman's Bank, in denominations of 5, 10 and 15 pence (10, 20 and 30 sous).
[edit] References
- Krause, Chester L. and Clifford Mishler (1978). Standard Catalog of World Coins: 1979 Edition, Colin R. Bruce II (senior editor), 5th ed., Krause Publications. ISBN 0-87341-020-3.
- Pick, Albert (1990). Standard Catalog of World Paper Money: Specialized Issues, Colin R. Bruce II and Neil Shafer (editors), 6th ed., Krause Publications. ISBN 0-87341-149-8.
[edit] External links
- Don's World Coin Gallery - Canada
- The Global History of Currencies - Canada
- Global Financial Data data series - Canada pound
- Global Financial Data currency histories table (
Microsoft Excel format)
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