Rare Antique 1850s Bank Of Upper Canada Hamilton Checks Blank Cheque for Sale

Rare Antique 1850s Bank Of Upper Canada Hamilton Checks Blank Cheque For Sale

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Rare Antique 1850s Bank Of Upper Canada Hamilton Checks Blank Cheque:
$110.00

This is a set of three antique checks issued by the Bank of Upper Canada, Hamilton. The checks are blank and have a note in pencil in the margin that reads “1897 Sis said this Bank closed 40 years ago Eastwood” - that means that the checks would date to around 1857. The Bank of Upper Canada was established in 1821 in York (Toronto) and was associated with the “Family Compact”, which was a small group of men who wielded great power and wealth in Upper Canada, and considered anti-democratic. The bank had a monopoly and was rather abusive in pursuit of debtors, however, its monopoly was slowly eroded during the 1840s. By 1863 the Bank was struggling and in 1866 it closed its doors.

The Hamilton branch was established prior to 1860 as a photo by William Notman of the building exists that was taken in 1860. The checks were used by Joseph Kneeshaw & Co of Hamilton, which was a stationer and bookbinder. They are printed with the image of a Native Indian Chief. The top cheque is intact, but has a small tear at the top (see photo) while the middle cheque has a fold through it and is missing a wedge although part of the piece is present, and the bottom cheque has paper missing at the bottom and bottom corner. Despite this, I think that these cheques are exceedingly rare, at least I could not find any examples online, so minor damage of this type should be forgiven.

Nice additions to a Canadian check collection!