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5 Cents Lethbridge; PoW Camp
| Issuer | Internment Camp 133 (Prisoner of War Camp, Lethbridge, Alberta) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1942-1945 |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Paper |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | INTERNMENT CAMP 133 5c P.W.C. Lethbridge, Alta. BULMAN BROS. WPG. |
| Reverse description | Plain yellow paper with no printed design. A handwritten annotation in red ink is visible near the centre, likely a contemporaneous marking applied during use. |
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| Comments |
Camp 133 at Lethbridge held the largest prisoner of war population in Canada during the war — at its peak, over 12,000 German POWs, including Afrika Korps veterans captured in North Africa. The Canadian government was obligated under the Geneva Convention to pay working prisoners, which is why a dedicated scrip currency was introduced: real money couldn't circulate inside the wire, but the men had to be compensated and given something to spend in the canteen.
Bulman Brothers, a commercial printer in Winnipeg with no particular security printing background, produced the scrip. The notes were not intended to outlast repatriation, and most didn't.