Canadian Cheque Chat

I am not an R.C.N.A. member, that is next on my list actually.
I was thinking I could try to do something for Material Culture Review, a little Folklore journal from Cape Breton University but getting in the R.C.N.A. news letter would be steller. I need to get a proper computer and editing software for pictures. Heck, I don't even have a word processor, I use Google docs. .

I can get my hands on a second Nicholson cheque if you don't have one. You use a cataloque system. When I hear things like this it makes me relies how much more I have to do to be a serious numismatist.

DO you know what bank your Irving cheque was from?

Yes, I have the same problem. I think all coin guys have that problem.
I haven't read any Irving bios in a while but I believe JD had a saw mill in Boctouche and KC brought the family bizz to Saint John.

Do you happen to have a Maritime bank cheque from Saint John? I do not have one nor have I seen one. I know they exist.

I have several from Woodstock if you ever want to trade.

So once you get them in mylar flips do you put them in those currency binder pages? I seen a guy keep his CTC collection like that and it looked sharp. That is ultimately what I think I am going to do. If I could I would like to do a numismatic display at the Hartland Trade Show this year and I was going to do a tokens of Carleton County theme with one of the Franklin mint's longest covered bridges mmedals in the center but I think I may show off some of my cheques. I am already known as the trade token, ancient, tea and cheque guy at my collector club.

Surely we can't be the only two on here interested in cheques? Anyone else?

The items shown here aren't Canadian but from a bank in a small community along the southern shores of lake Erie.
The one here I thought may be interesting because it was charged $1.25 for insufficient funds.
What makes a check collectable anyway apart from the bank?
Do you look for checks signed by certain people or are you looking for who they were made out to?
I have quite a few checks, promissory notes, receipts etc from this gentleman all are from around 1911-1913.
Some of the checks are made out to well know companies of the time. Here's a list of some.
1. Standard Oil Co. of NY.
2. Studebaker Corporation.
3. American Express Co.
4. International Harvester Co. of America.
5. John Deer Plow Co.
I also noticed one of the checks was made out for a value of only 4 cents.

Most are Ottawa, some Toronto, at least one New York.

I blanked out the payee and their address (for their privacy) but here is the cheque.

Speaking of why a cheque is collectable I could tell you I like the Government of Canada cheque, but I am not sure why. Is it because it is Canadian, the vignette coat of arms? I do not know why I like that particular cheque but I do.

I am a geographical collector, anything Maritimes with a focus on NB and NS usually. Of course as I go down the rabbit hole of stamp collecting I could see myself looking to do stamp type sets on cheques.




That is attractive to me but I am not sure about other cheque guys. I collect envelops from tea companies and I have a King Cole cover and a Red Rose cover made out to the same guy in NS and I enjoyed doing the research on that man. The fact that you have all those cheques from big companies all from the same guy AND they are over 100 years old is awesome. You could really paint a story with those. I would guess he was a farmer, the farm might still be in use.

The Bank of North Collins. I love the blacklettering/ fracture script. They did not have to go above a stander Times New Romans but they did. These things are ephemeral, you tossed them out. If cheques aren't amazing works of folk art then I do not know what is.

It's been more than a year since the last post, but I thought I'd give it a bump.

CC-Ottawa, of those checks you listed, do any of them have engraved vignettes? I'm guessing they are probably too recent, but thought I'd ask. I'd be interested in seeing posts of the more artistic designs.