Hey everyone. Recently I've been buying unsorted lots off Ebay. This Hamilton Anniversary Dollar was among the interesting coins I found in one of my lots. I've tried, but have so far failed to find any info about this coin. I think its composition is probably nickel. Thought it was some sort of token at first glance, but the expiration date on the obverse under the ships hull makes me think that maybe this was actually usable currency in Canada (for a limited time at least). Can anybody tell me more about this coin? Was it part of some sort of series? Thanks in advance.
Well, The coin is correct, as Hamilton (Ontario) was founded in 1846 It is NOT legal tender, as all Canadian coins have the British monarch (Queen Elizabeth) on it. Also, all Canadian dollars in that period were silver Don't know if it is a token, a medal, or what.
A lot of these "trade dollars" were used during special events commemorating usually a centennial or anniversary for that particular town or city. They were authorized as regular currency in that locale up until the expiry date.
Cool, thanks for the explanation! Might you happen to know of any publications or sites where these coins might be cataloged? Do they have any collecting value? Also, thanks for chiming in, jcakcoin.
The site is down currently. You might want to bookmark it and check back every couple of weeks. As for value, most are about a $1 to $5. You can check ebay for values. Type in "Canada trade dollar". You'll get a few listings. http://www.zwiggystradetokens.com/index.php?main_page=down_for_maintenance
