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5 Dollars / Piastres
| Issuer | Farmers Bank of Rustico |
|---|---|
| Year | 1872 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Blue-grey intaglio print on white cotton paper. A central pastoral vignette occupies the upper portion, showing farm animals and figures in a rural landscape, with the large bold inscription FARMERS BANK OF RUSTICO below. The bilingual denomination FIVE DOLLARS / CINQ PIASTRES appears in the centre, flanked by the numeral 5 at left, with the place name RUSTICO and a manuscript date of June 1872 in the lower portion along with a Cashier signature line. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse is unprinted, presenting a plain cream-white cotton paper surface with no vignettes, text, or ornamental work, consistent with the simple production standards of this small private Canadian colonial bank issue. |
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| Comments |
The Farmers Bank of Rustico holds a singular place in Canadian banking history as the only chartered bank ever operated by a Roman Catholic parish — founded in 1861 by Father Georges-Antoine Belcourt on Prince Edward Island to extend credit to Acadian fishing and farming communities shut out by anglophone commercial banks. It was never large, never influential beyond its immediate community, and lost its federal charter under the Bank Act of 1871, which imposed capitalization requirements the institution simply could not meet.
This 1872 note was issued after that charter lapsed, making its legal standing as a circulating instrument genuinely questionable. The bank limped on informally until 1894.