Prince Edward Island pound facts for kids
The pound was the money used in Prince Edward Island (PEI) for a long time, until the year 1871. This type of money was split into smaller parts: 20 shillings made one pound, and each shilling was worth 12 pence. In 1871, the pound was replaced by the dollar. At first, money from Britain called sterling coins were used. But soon, PEI also started making its own coins and paper money.
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What Was the Prince Edward Island Pound?
The Prince Edward Island pound was the official money of the island before Canada became a country. It was similar to the British pound but had its own unique features, especially with its coins and banknotes.
Special Coins of Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island only made its own special coins in one year: 1813. There were two types of these coins:
- A 1-shilling coin (written as 1/–)
- A 5-shilling coin (written as 5/–)
These coins were made in a very clever way! People took a Spanish dollar coin, which was a common coin from Spain. They cut out the middle part, like punching a hole in it.
- The small piece cut from the middle was stamped with a picture of a sunburst (like rays of sun). This piece became the 1-shilling coin.
- The outer ring, which was left after the middle was cut out, was also stamped with a sunburst. This ring became the 5-shilling coin.
Because of its unique shape with a hole in the middle, the 5-shilling coin was often called a holey dollar.
Paper Money: Banknotes
Besides coins, Prince Edward Island also used paper money called banknotes.
- In 1790, when the island was known as the Island of St. Jean, the government printed special "Treasury notes." These notes came in different values like 1 shilling, 1 shilling and 6 pence, 2 shillings and 6 pence, 5 shillings, 10 shillings, 20 shillings, and 40 shillings.
- More Treasury notes were printed between 1834 and 1870, with values of 5 shillings, 10 shillings, 1 pound, 2 pounds, and 5 pounds.
Two special banks on the island also printed their own paper money:
- The Bank of Prince Edward Island started in 1854.
- The Union Bank of Prince Edward Island.
It's interesting that the pounds from these two banks were not worth exactly the same amount compared to the British sterling pound.
- The Bank of Prince Edward Island printed notes from 1856 to 1863. These notes came in values of 5 shillings, 10 shillings, 1 pound, 2 pounds, and 5 pounds. One of their pounds was worth about 13 shillings and 4 pence in British sterling. The notes even showed both values!
- The Union Bank printed notes between 1864 and 1865. Their notes showed values in both dollars and sterling. For example, they had notes for $1, $2, $5, and $20. A dollar from this bank was worth 4 shillings and 2 pence in British sterling.
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