Lot 3092

Description

Bank of Van Diemen's Land, Ltd. (In Liquidation) Grand Lottery ticket No 19086 for one pound issued to Colin Johnston, 1893, imprint McCarron, Stewart & Co., Printers, Brisbane, ink rubber stamp of Tattersall's Lottery Van Diemen's Land. Very fine.

The ticket should generate some interest as it is very unusual to conduct a lottery to realise the assets of a bank, indeed any company. The ticket is also a key part of the historical development of Tattersall's in Tasmania. The following is taken from the Wikipedia entry for George Adams, the Tattersall's founder: "When the Bank of Van Diemen's Land Ltd, Hobart, went into liquidation in 1893, the directors decided to raffle the bank's assets. They made them into a lottery, 300,000 tickets at one pound each. The first prize was the bank building itself and the land on which it was built on Miller's Corner, Hobart. Second prize was Hadley's Orient Hotel, which was owned by the bank. All other prizes consisted of a long list of bank properties in various places. Tickets were fully taken up. Incidentally, this lottery, the first in Tasmania, was conducted by George Adams. It was because of its sucess that George Adams was inspired to inaugurate his famous Tattersall's Consulation."