Debunking Hobby Rumours

I guess that depends on how you interpret the words... not everyone reads it the same way. Your "implication" is an interpretation of another's words...

As stated the mint made up the order after silver dollar production had ceased for the year. The order of 2000 coins, yes could be made up if they had surplus minted coins available in their vaults. Which I am sure they did, I believe all circulation production was based on forecast not on standing orders from banks etc. Except in the early years of minting where there were standing orders and perhaps extras struck on the just in case premise. IMHO

Going to jump in on the "Arnprior" discussion.
I don't pretend to be an expert by any means but specializing in Silver Dollars, I have done a fair amount of research. In an interview with C. G. O'Neill, President of Playtex in Arnprior, he was 2000 silver dollars short of the number required for a employees Christmas Bonus.
After being informed the Mint had no authority to produce these extra coins, he next approached the Minister of Finance who gave the necessary authorization. On December 10th, 1955, the Mint filled a special order of 2000 Silver Dollars.
The Mint used a well polished reverse die with 1 1/2 WL and two different obverse dies, 1 with a crack between the T & A in Gratia (which is a marker for an Arnprior)and the other with no die cracks.
Again this was from an interview and I am sure Mr. O'Neill is no longer with us to verify this.
I suppose each one of us can decide on validity of this story, but I am inclined to believe it for the most part.

Interesting info JimmyD.

Could you please tell us where the info on the interview with C.G. O'Neil came from.

"I suppose each one of us can decide on validity of this story"(JimmyD)

Very true statement.

Thanks Pennyman.
My post was from some notes I had and I was trying to find the website. You saved me the trouble.

Appreciate the link pennyman007.

"Next to be approached was Minister of Finance, The Hon. W. E. Harris. Oddly enough, he was agreeable to the proposal and gave the necessary authorization, quite probably to the astonishment of the Mint Master. Thus it was that on December 10th, 1955, the Mint filled a special order for Playtex by minting 2,000 silver dollars."(Patrick Glassford is shown as the source of such information or material)

If the Minister of Finance did have the authority to grant such an action to be taken on behalf of a private firm and did direct the Mint Master to comply with such a request, I am inclined to believe that an official written record of the directive would exist.

If such a written directive does exist, I am inclined to believe that the hobby would have already been made aware of the document.

Bellmaker

"The wording implies that the Mint restarted the dollar coining presses just to accommodate a request from an unknown private company."

Obviously you are not from Ottawa. My family has lived near Ottawa for just about 200 years. While I was not around in 1955, I am quite sure based on the stories I have heard that, in 1955 Ottawa, if the head of Playtex up the river in Arnprior wanted some silver dollars for a special reason, it would take him about 2 phone calls to reach the Minister of Finance.....perhaps only one phone call if they were both members of the Royal Ottawa Golf Club, the Rideau Club or had cottages near each other. I suspect that the Minister of Finance would have happily got in touch with someone at the mint and all would have figured out how to get 2000 dollars made as a special presentation to the employees of a large local employer. If the mint report had already been finalized and this created a paperwork problem, I am sure that the extra dollars would have been added to the 1956 total. I doubt very much that the paperwork would have got in the way of the minting of the dollars.

Just like that? Prove to us that it does not exist...

Or, so what if it does not exist? Not every piece of communication in Canadian government is archived forever. My own department routinely shreds files that are a decade older or more...

Do you save your tax files and receipts for more than eight years? Most Canadians don't - so by your logic, does that mean those shredded receipts never existed?

"Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence." (Carl Sagan)