About the note
All but two notes in this series carry a portrait of King George VI. The same portrait appears on the First series’ $50 note. Robert Savage of the American Bank Note Company (ABN) engraved the King’s portrait after a photograph by Bertram Park of Marcus Adams Ltd. in London, England. In the image, the King is wearing an admiral’s uniform. Though he was initially in the Navy during the First World War, he switched to the Royal Air Force in 1918 and became the first in his family to learn to fly.
The colour of this note changed from the orange of 1935 to the familiar deep blue of subsequent Canadian $5 bills. The allegorical vignette on the back was engraved by Harry P. Dawson of ABN. The hammer, level and gear—along with the muscular fellow seated on a generator building—represent the theme of electric power. The landscape behind these images suggests nature harnessed by humans for their electricity needs.
At a glance
- Portrait: King George VI
- Date of issue: July 19, 1937
- Last day of issue: December 31, 1954
- Signatures:
- Deputy Governors James A. C. Osborne, Donald Gordon and James E. Coyne
- Governor Graham F. Towers
- Dimensions: 15.2 cm x 7.2 cm
- Design: Canadian Bank Note Company Ltd., British American Bank Note Company Ltd.
- Printer: British American Bank Note Company Ltd.
- Status: legal tender
