1 / 5 / 10 Dollars

The Niagara District Bank was chartered in 1854 and failed within a few years, making its note issues among the shorter-lived of the Upper Canadian chartered bank series. St. Catharines at mid-century was a modest commercial hub riding the Welland Canal trade, but the bank never achieved the capitalization or correspondent network needed to survive the competitive pressures that eliminated dozens of similar institutions before Confederation.

The "P" suffix on the reference number indicates this is a proof impression — struck for archival or approval purposes, never released into circulation. Proofs from Canadian chartered banks of this period are considerably scarcer than issued notes, as most were retained by the printer or the bank's officers.