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They called her the Queen of the Hurricanes: Elsie MacGill oversaw the production of more than 1,450 Hawker Hurricane fighters during the Second World War. In 2023 the Royal Canadian Mint dedicated a loonie to her, and this coin comes from the coloured part of the issue: of the 3 million struck, 2 million received a coloured design.
Artist Claire Watson of Tofino, British Columbia, portrayed MacGill holding rolled blueprints. Above her flies the Maple Leaf Trainer II, and beside her is a Hurricane. On the coloured version the fighter is green, tan, blue and white with red and blue markings, set against a cloudy sky. The name ELSIE MACGILL is engraved beneath the aircraft, next to the artist’s initials CW.
Her list of firsts is remarkable. MacGill (1905–1980) was the first Canadian woman to earn an electrical engineering degree (University of Toronto, 1927) and the first woman in North America with a master’s degree in aeronautical engineering (University of Michigan, 1929). The Maple Leaf Trainer II shown on the coin was the first aircraft in the world designed by a woman. As chief engineer at Canadian Car and Foundry in Fort William she adapted the Hurricanes for Canadian winters, and later championed women’s rights, serving on the Royal Commission on the Status of Women in 1967–1970.
The obverse preserves the memory of another era. On 2023 coins, Susanna Blunt’s portrait of Elizabeth II is accompanied by the dates 1952 and 2022, separated by four pearls, one for each effigy of the Queen used on Canadian coins since 1953. A single dollar thus brings together aviation history, the Second World War, women in engineering and a farewell to a long reign.
Uncirculated (UNC) condition: the coin never circulated, shows no wear and keeps its mint lustre; minor marks from storage in bank bags are acceptable. A coloured piece in this condition fills the 2023 slot in Canada’s commemorative loonie series and suits an aviation-themed collection.
A collectable coin from VPcoins can be an addition to your own collection or a meaningful gift.