1923 $2 note signed by the Duke of Windsor

News: Registration is free here at the CPMF!

I was perusing the National Currency Museum's online collection and came across a very interesting
display.  It is a 1923 $2 note that was sent by a CPMS member (J.A. Peddie) in 1967 to the Duke of
Windsor requesting that he autograph the note.

The note was returned autographed, along with a letter from the private secretary to the Duke and
Dutchess of Windsor.

Very cool indeed. Priceless.

Yes very nice and unique item as a lot

For those who do not realize the historical significance and rarity of the autographed 1923 $2 bank note,
consider these facts:

The Prince of Wales, whose portrait is pictured on the 1923 $2 Dominion of Canada bank note, reigned as
King Edward VIII for the brief period from January 20th, 1936 until December 11th, 1936.

On December 10th, 1936, Edward abdicated the throne so that he could marry the American divorcée
Wallis Simpson.  His brother, Prince Albert, Duke of York succeeded to the throne as George VI, with his
elder daughter, The Princess Elizabeth, first in the line of succession, as the heiress-presumptive.

On December 12th, 1936, King George VI announced he was to make his brother Duke of Windsor.  The
Duke of Windsor married Mrs. Simpson in a private ceremony on June 3rd, 1937.  Following the wedding,
Wallis Simpson assumed the title "Dutchess of Windsor".

When in the United States, the Duke and Dutchess of Windsor took residence at one of Manhattan's most
majestic Park Avenue apartments, the two-bedroom Royal Suite at The Waldorf Towers.

It was quite a stroke of luck for CPMS member J. A. Peddie to not only get his letter brought to the
attention of the Duke of Windsor at his New York residence, but to also get him to autograph the bank
note and send it back by return mail.

This extraordinary feat could only be outdone if a current CPMS member were to get a 2003 $10 BER bank
note signed by Sir John A. McDonald 

I was going through some old posts and I noticed this post from 2007 that I made.  The image is long gone so I thought I would post it again since it has a provenance dating back to the early days of the CPMS.

One thing I missed in my original post was a line in the letter sent to the Duke of Windsor by J. A. Peddie in which he states he is chartered member #1 of the Canadian Paper Money Society.

I am wondering if anyone can confirm this from historical CPMS membership logs and provide any biographical information on Mr. J. A. Peddie ?

I did notice his name listed in the credits of the 1968 Charlton Standard Catalogue of Canadian Coins, Tokens and Paper Money.

very cool

One thing I missed in my original post was a line in the letter sent to the Duke of Windsor by J. A. Peddie in which he states he is chartered member #1 of the Canadian Paper Money Society.

I am wondering if anyone can confirm this from historical CPMS membership logs and provide any biographical information on Mr. J. A. Peddie ?

I did notice his name listed in the credits of the 1968 Charlton Standard Catalogue of Canadian Coins, Tokens and Paper Money.

Hi Arthur,

I checked a scanned copy of the CPMS Journal, Volume 1, Issue 1, January 1965.  I was hoping for a list of charter members, but I was pleasantly surprised to find an article on page 5 written by "J.A. Peddie, C.1, FRNS".  The footnote says:

It is a pleasure indeed to have our first Charter Member contribute this special study to Issue No. 1.  Mr. Peddie, a long-time numismatist, has been a serious collector of paper money for many years, and has been a most enthusiastic supporter of all aspects of Canadian numismatics.  He is a Past President of the Toronto Coin Club.

Continuing on in that issue, I did indeed find what I was originally looking for on page 19.  J. Albert Peddie, of 593 St. Clair Ave. West, Apt. 6, Toronto 10, Ont. is listed as charter member number 1 along with 80 others.

Hi Arthur,

I checked a scanned copy of the CPMS Journal, Volume 1, Issue 1, January 1965.  I was hoping for a list of charter members, but I was pleasantly surprised to find an article on page 5 written by "J.A. Peddie, C.1, FRNS".  The footnote says:
Continuing on in that issue, I did indeed find what I was originally looking for on page 19.  J. Albert Peddie, of 593 St. Clair Ave. West, Apt. 6, Toronto 10, Ont. is listed as charter member number 1 along with 80 others.

Excellent investigative work Brent.  Thanks.

I can only imagine what other great banknotes Mr. Peddie must have had in his collection some 50 years ago.  The funny part is I grew up about four blocks from where this gentleman resided at St. Clair West and Christie Street.