2009 Canada Fine Silver $20 Coin - Great Canadian Locomotives: Jubilee

2009 Canada Fine Silver $20 Coin - Great Canadian Locomotives: Jubilee

Face Value: $20
Mintage: 10000
Composition: 99.99% Silver
Weight (g): 31.39
Diameter (mm): 38
Finish: Proof

Design: Fifty years after Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) completed its transcontinental railway, a new generation of sleek, efficient-looking locomotives was fuelling renewed interest in trains throughout North America. The Jubilee, aptly named for the CPR’s milestone anniversary, captured peoples’ imaginations with its high-speed, semi-streamlined design and was soon being referred to as, "The Flying Ace of the Steel Rails".

Introduced in 1936, this specially-designed 4-4-4* F2a type locomotive featured nickel-steel, high pressure boilers and giant 80-inch (203 cm) diameter driving wheels that were capable of delivering sustained speeds over 160 kph (99.4 mph). In fact, of the five engines that were built, number 3003 earned itself an enviable spot in the history books by clocking a speed of 181 kph (112.5 mph)—a record that remained unchallenged for 40 years!

It was an era of excitement and innovation. More than half a million Canadians welcomed Jubilees as special exhibition trains headed into towns across the country before entering regular passenger service. Engines 3000 and 3002 powered the Royal York between Toronto and Windsor (Ontario); engine 3001, the Calgary-Edmonton (Alberta) Chinook; and engines 3003 and 3004, the Montreal-Quebec City (Quebec) Viger.