Token - 1 Penny, Magdalan Islands, Canada, 1815

Penny, Issued by Magdalan Islands, Canada, 1815 Mint not recorded Sir Isaac Coffin was created Baronet of the Magdalen Islands on 19 May 1804 (he may have had earlier rights, from 1787, as a reward for services to Britain during the American War of Independence), he retired from the Royal Navy in 1808 and entered politics in 1814 after being advanced to the rank of full admiral. In 1815 he had penny tokens struck for use on the Magdeline Islands apparently believing he had the right to do so as Baronet. Some believe he planned to rule the Island as a feudal baron. He may have visited the Islands in 1815 bringing the tokens with him but he did not stay long, being elected as a member of Parliament for Illchester in 1818. The tokens were used on the Island, most show wear brought about by circulation. The tokens were probablty manufactured by Sir Edward Thomason in Birmingham, England (who had been articled to Matthew Boulton, Soho Mint)