Old Money from The Union Bank of Canada in Quebec City

The Union Bank of Canada operated under that title from 1886 until 1925.  It was originally called The Union Bank of Lower Canada.  In 1925 The Royal Bank of Canada purchases The Union Bank of Canada.  This is one of our favorite chartered banks.  It was the first chartered bank to open a location in Alberta.  You can find lots of notes with great overprints related to Western Canada.  Our guide below has more information about its bank notes.

Bank Notes from 1886:

The Canada Bank Note Co. Montreal printed five, ten, twenty, fifty, and one hundred dollar bills for The Union Bank of Canada.  All of these notes are dated as 2nd Aug. 1886.  The signature on the left hand side of the note could be that of any bank official.  A. Thomson has his engraved signature on the right hand side of each note.  All of these notes are very beautiful and ahead of their time in terms of eye appeal.  Sadly for collectors, these are also very rare.  Not many exist today.  We would love the chance to buy one.  The five dollar bill below is an issued bank note.  The $20 bill is a proof.  Proofs are always worth much less money than issued bank notes.

Bank Notes from 1893:

The British American Bank Note Co. Ottawa printed 1st June 1893 notes from The Union Bank of Canada.  Five and ten dollar bills exist and are available to collectors.  Twenty, fifty, and one hundred dollar bills were issued, but they are very rare.  A portrait of A. Thomas is shown on the right hand side of each denomination.  His signature is right beside his portrait.  If your note does not have a serial number or signatures, then you have a proof note.  Contact us for pricing details.

Bank Notes from 1903 & 1907:

The Union Bank of Canada issued five and ten dollar bills in 1903 and 1907.  Each year has the same design.  This time The American Bank Note Co. Ottawa got the printing contract.  These notes are dated as 1st June 1903 or 1st June 1907.  Generally speaking, notes from 1903 are rarer.  The 1903 $5 bill comes in two varieties based on whether it has red serial numbers or blue serial numbers.  Red numbers are rare.  Notes from 1903 are signed by A. Thomson; notes from 1907 are signed by John Sharples.

Bank Notes from 1912:

The designs for five and ten dollar bills from 1903 and 1907 were reused for July 1st 1912 bank notes.  Notes from 1912 are more common though.  Almost 4.5 million 1912 $5 bills were issued.  Another 3.2 million 1912 $10 bill were printed.  There are lots of varieties based on overprints, signatures, and small engraving differences.  If you have one of these, then you definitely want to send us pictures of it so we can tell you how much it is worth.  Be aware that falsely overprinted North West Territories notes do exist.

$20, $50, & $100 Bills from 1907 & 1912:

The Union Bank of Canada issued twenty, fifty, and one hundred dollar bills dated as 1st June 1907 and July 1st 1912.  Notes from 1907 are very rare.  They have a signature of John Sharples, a brown back, and are engraved as being from Quebec.  Notes from 1912 are signed by John Galt, have a green back, and are engraved as being from Winnipeg.  All denominations from 1912 are collectible, but $50 and $100 bills can get quite pricey.  Please contact us for details.  We are always buyers.

Bank Notes from 1921:

All Union Bank of Canada notes from July 1st 1921 have a portrait of John Galt.  H.B. Shaw is featured on $5, $10, and $20 bills.  All notes have an engraved location of Winnipeg and J.W. Hamilton also signed each note.  Printing totals look like this:  600,000 – $5 bills, 400,000 – $10 bills, 40,000 – $20 bills, 10,000 – $50 bills, 4,000 – $100 bills.  As you might expect, any denomination higher than ten dollars is very difficult to locate.  And surprisingly, 1921 $5 bills are actually slightly more common than 1921 $10 bills.  All of these denominations have beautiful colors when they are in high grades.

GOT SOMETHING TO SELL?

We buy all types of Canadian currency.  We are especially interested in bank notes from The Union Bank of Canada in Quebec City.  High grade notes and notes from Western Canada are certainly of high interest.  You might be surprised at how much money we can offer for some currency.  Early notes and high denominations always bring good money.  Send us an email with pictures of the front and back of your bank note and we will respond quickly with our offer.

Manning@CanadaCurrency.com

Sample Bank Note Image:

Your piece of currency from The Union Bank of Canada in Quebec City could look similar to the one seen below.  Don’t worry if yours is different.  Lots of different varieties are out there.  Contact us for more value information.