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Charles Connell (1810 – June 28, 1873) was a Canadian politician, now remembered mainly for placing his image on a 5-cent postage stamp. Born in the then-British colony of Northampton, New Brunswick to a family of Loyalists who had fled the American Revolution, he entered politics in 1846, serving in the colony's Legislative Assembly and House of Assembly. == Career == In 1858, Connell was appointed Postmaster General of the colony, at a time when increasing trade with the United States was forcing the British colonies to reconsider their currencies and institute a decimal system that would be more familiar to their American neighbors. New Brunswick adopted a decimal currency in 1859, and in the following year, Connell issued the first series of postage stamps in the new denomination. While few people had problems with the new currency, they were outraged that Connell chose to depict himself on the 5-cent stamp, instead of Queen Victoria. In an effort to stem the criticism and charges of extreme arrogance, he offered to buy up all the stamps and burned them publicly on the front lawn of his house. He also resigned his office as postmaster general. It is unknown how many stamps survived, but they number no more than a few dozen and are now extremely rare.〔(Scandalous stamp proofs sold at auction ), ''CBC News'', May 10, 2006〕 Some counterfeits of the stamp exist also. Despite the episode, Connell continued to serve in the colonial legislature up until 1867. A member of the Executive Council of New Brunswick, he served as Surveyor General from July 10, 1866 to July 17, 1867. An ardent supporter of Canadian Confederation, Connell was elected as a Member of Parliament representing the New Brunswick electoral district of Carleton in the first two Canadian parliaments. From 1865 to 1866, he published his own newspaper, ''The Union''.〔http://archives.gnb.ca/APPS/NewspaperDirectory/Directory.aspx?culture=en-CA&Key=690&Tab=5〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Charles Connell」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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