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4 Dollars = 20 Shillings
| Issuer | Accommodation Bank |
|---|---|
| Year | 1837 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | The obverse bears the bold title 'ACCOMMODATION' at the top, with the large numeral '4' repeated at the upper left and right flanked by ornate lathe-work panels. A central vignette presents a classical allegorical figure seated beside a column and shield, rendered in fine intaglio engraving, with the legend 'Upper Canada BANK' arching below. The lower portion carries a manuscript promise-to-pay text in letterpress reading 'Will pay the bearer Twenty Shillings twelve months after date in Specie Current Bank Notes for value received,' with the place of issue noted as Kingston and two handwritten signatures. |
|---|---|
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| Variants | P#S1547a - Completed note P#S1547r - Remainder without serial # or date |
| Comments |
The Accommodation Bank was chartered in 1835 and failed spectacularly in 1838, making its entire note issue extraordinarily short-lived. Ontario's pre-Confederation banking environment was notoriously permissive, and the Accommodation Bank was among the more thinly capitalized institutions to receive a charter — its collapse left local merchants holding worthless paper during an already turbulent period shaped by the Upper Canada Rebellion of 1837.
The dual denomination — four dollars expressed alongside twenty shillings — reflects the awkward monetary reality of Upper Canada at the time, where sterling and decimal values coexisted in daily commerce.