Twelve amazing candidates
Who would you choose for your bank NOTE-able woman?
On 15 April, the public consultation to select an iconic Canadian woman to appear on a bank note closed. Over 26,000 nominations were received following the Bank of Canada’s open call—a great success. When you consider that the United Kingdom’s public response for their bank note consultation was 29,076 out of a population of 64 million—ours was an amazing success.
The Currency team then rolled up their sleeves and dove in as they began to sort through this enormous wealth of nominees. Of course there weren’t over 26,000 different women nominated. Some suggestions were unique but many hundreds were duplicate nominations. A number of them also had to be eliminated when nominees did not meet the criteria—one of which was that the person must have been deceased for 25 years.
Mind you, there was still a mountain of eligible names to work with—over 460, in fact. The seven-member independent Advisory Council, consisting of historians, authors, activists, academics and athletes, and guided by two public consultation experts, faced a challenging task. It was their job to whittle down the hundreds of eligible nominees to a mere twelve.
It’s important to note that the number of nominations received for each woman was not taken into account. In other words, it wasn’t a popularity contest. As long as a nominee was eligible, she was considered. To help further guide their decision-making, the Council developed an additional list of criteria for each woman to meet. She should:
- have broken or overcome barriers,
- be inspirational,
- have made a significant change, and
- have left a lasting legacy.
The 12 women of the long list also needed to reflect Canada’s regional and cultural diversity. They couldn’t all be activists or artists, either, but as a group should represent a broad range of achievements. It took the Advisory Council three days to deliberate.
And now let me present to you our long list of 12 amazing women:
Pitseolak Ashoona, Cape Dorset graphic artist, 1904–1983.
Emily Carr, artist, 1871–1945.
Thérèse Casgrain, party leader, social reformer, 1896–1981.
Viola Desmond, activist, businessperson, 1914–1965.
Lotta Hitschmanova, international humanitarian, 1909–1990.
E. Pauline Johnson (Tekahionwake) Anglo-Mohawk poet, 1861–1913.
Elizabeth (Elsie) MacGill, engineer, aircraft designer, 1905–1980.
Nellie McClung, suffragette, politician, 1873–1951.
Lucy Maud Montgomery, author, 1874–1942.
Fanny (Bobbie) Rosenfeld, Olympic medalist, world record holder,
1904–1969.
Gabrielle Roy, literary pioneer, journalist, 1909–1983.
Idola Saint-Jean, feminist, suffragette, 1880–1945.
Please visit the Bank NOTE-able Canadian Woman webpage to read profiles of all 12 candidates.
So what’s next in the selection process? The short list. A team of scholars, historians and other experts from Canadian universities will further research the nominees. The achievements of each will be considered within the context of the times in which she lived. The information will be shared with the Council, along with the results of a public opinion survey, to aid them in reducing the long list of 12 to a short list of three to five nominees.
This short list will be presented to the Minister of Finance, Bill Morneau, who will make the final decision in accordance with the Bank of Canada Act. Our bank NOTE-able woman will be hot off the presses and in your wallets in late 2018.
We want to hear from you! Do you have an idea for a blog post you’d like to see?
Content type(s):
Blog posts
The Museum Blog
February 26, 2025
New acquisitions—2024 edition
Bank of Canada Museum’s acquisitions in 2024 highlight the relationships that shape the National Currency Collection.
Content type(s):
Blog posts
February 11, 2025
Money’s metaphors
Buck, broke, greenback, loonie, toonie, dough, flush, gravy train, born with a silver spoon in your mouth… No matter how common the expression for money, many of us haven’t the faintest idea where these terms come from.
Content type(s):
Blog posts
August 6, 2024
Treaties, money and art
The Bank of Canada Museum’s collection has a new addition: an artwork called Free Ride by Frank Shebageget. But why would a museum about the economy buy art?
Content type(s):
Blog posts
Subject(s):
Arts,
History
July 16, 2024
Rai: big money
By: Graham Iddon
An item is said to have cultural value when it can be directly associated with the history, people, beliefs or rituals important to a society. It’s the same with a rai—its value can be greater depending upon who authorized it, who carved it and who subsequently owned it.
Content type(s):
Blog posts
Subject(s):
Economy,
Geography,
History
Grade level(s):
Grades 11 and 12 / Secondary 5 and CEGEP
April 18, 2024
Lessons from the Great Depression
By: Graham Iddon
What the stock market crash of 1929 did was starkly reveal the weaknesses of economic systems that had evolved from the unregulated capitalism of the late 19th century.
Content type(s):
Blog posts
Subject(s):
Financial literacy,
History
Grade level(s):
Grade 09 / Secondary 3,
Grade 10 / Secondary 4,
Grades 11 and 12 / Secondary 5 and CEGEP
March 25, 2024
Welcoming Newfoundland to Canada
By: David Bergeron
Newfoundland’s entry into Confederation marked the end of an era when Canadian provinces issued their own coins and paper money.
Content type(s):
Blog posts
December 19, 2023
New Acquisitions—2023 Edition
It’s that time of the year again—the wrap-up of the Bank of Canada Museum’s annual acquisition program. Here are a few highlights of the latest additions to the National Currency Collection.
Content type(s):
Blog posts
November 27, 2023
Mo’ money, mo’ questions
But what do you do with money once you have it? That’s for you to decide. A budget can really help. It will allow you to keep track of what you earn (income) and what you spend (expenses).
Content type(s):
Blog posts
Subject(s):
Financial literacy
Grade level(s):
Grade 04,
Grade 05,
Grade 06,
Grade 07 / Secondary 1,
Grade 08 / Secondary 2,
Grade 09 / Secondary 3,
Grade 10 / Secondary 4,
Grades 11 and 12 / Secondary 5 and CEGEP
