Back in the March issue of Almost Circulated (Volume 1, issue 2) I wrote about the Star Coin Encyclopedia Jim loaned me, posting a photo from the book of a page marked, “Worthless Canadian Bills” and I wondered, “how many had been discarded because of this information.”

Well, I found an auction on eBay which ended August 6, 2014 which offered an 1876 $10 note from The Consolidated Bank of Canada in Montreal with the words “worthless” boldly written across the front and back in red and blue respectively. Seeing the bill as such, I consulted the photograph from the Star Coin Encyclopedia and sure enough, this particular bank is mentioned as issuing worthless notes. The Consolidated Bank of Canada was formed in 1876 with the merger of City Bank and the Royal Canadian Bank, but it failed in 1880. Did someone mark the bill with these words because of that information? I’m far from an expert in paper money, but I’m not aware of any other reason for such a designation. Despite the graffiti, the note sold for $86.88, so it’s not exactly worthless.

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