The 1935 Voyageur dollar was Canada’s first circulating silver dollar, struck for George V’s Silver Jubilee. Emanuel Hahn’s voyageur canoe under the northern lights is one of the great North American coin designs — and the first-year issue anchors every Canadian dollar collection.
Key facts
- Canada’s first circulating silver dollar, issued 1935 to commemorate George V’s Silver Jubilee.
- Designed by Emanuel Hahn: a voyageur and an Indigenous paddler in a canoe under the northern lights, with islands, spruce trees, and a wheat sheaf.
- Reported mintage of 428,707; .800 silver, ~23.33 g, 36 mm.
- The Voyageur design ran on silver dollars 1935–1967, then in nickel until the loonie replaced the dollar coin in 1987.
- Authentication notes: first-year 1935 dollars are among the most counterfeited Canadian crowns — verify weight, diameter, and edge reeding; certified examples are the norm for high grades.