Catalog
5 Shillings
| Issuer | Bank of Fredericton, New Brunswick |
|---|---|
| Year | 1838 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | The note is divided into five vertical vignette panels: at centre, a steamship under sail on open water with a shoreline beyond; to the left, a reclining female allegorical figure within a ruled panel; to the right, a standing male figure with tools within a matching ruled panel; the two outer panels carry circular counters bearing the numeral '5' and the legend 'SHILLINGS'. The bold title 'THE BANK OF FREDERICTON' runs beneath the central vignette, with a manuscript promise-to-pay text reading 'Promise to pay Five Shillings to bearer on demand at their Banking House in Fredericton, New Brunswick,' with ruled spaces for the Cash and Pres signatures at foot. |
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| Obverse lettering | FIVE SHILLINGS CURRENCY FIVE SHILLINGS No B FIVE SHILLINGS THE BANK OF FREDERICTON Promise to pay Five Shillings to bearer on demand at their Banking House in Fredericton, New Brunswick Cash Pres |
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| Comments |
The Bank of Fredericton was a short-lived institution — chartered but perpetually undercapitalized, it struggled to establish credibility in a colonial credit market already dominated by the Bank of New Brunswick and the Saint John-based competition. Notes of this bank are rare precisely because the bank itself barely functioned as a going concern before its effective collapse.
One attribution worth scrutinizing: The Canadian Bank Note & Litho Co. did not exist under that name in 1838. The firm's lineage traces through several predecessor operations, and catalog attributions for early New Brunswick issues sometimes reflect the successor company that held the original plates rather than the actual printer at time of issue.