Cherished $5 bill from 1937 stolen from Sunshine Village Ski Resort

Staff members at the Mad Trappers Public House are frantically looking for a lost piece of its history — a $5 bill from 1937 that was discovered by contractors during a 1990s renovation.

The restaurant, located at Sunshine Village Ski Resort near Banff, Alta., proudly displayed the bill for years, viewing it as an important part of its legacy. Now it appears to have been stolen.

Staff found the frame that housed the bill damaged and the bill missing on Tuesday. 

"That $5 bill has very deep sentimental ties to us because it's a part of our history and the contractor who found it actually had it framed," said Kendra Scurfield, brand and communications director at Sunshine Village Ski Resort.

Displaying the bill was a way to honour the person who left it in the rafters decades earlier, according to Scurfield, who believes the bill was probably meant to be "a "token of good luck and fortitude for the resort." 

The frame that housed the bill had a note that read, "This bill should forever stay at this location." 

For years, it was left alone despite its public display — until reported missing by Scurfield and her team members this week.

'The value is very much sentimental'

"I was actually one…of the people who discovered it was missing and it felt like a punch to the stomach," Scurfield said.

"That was a little token of our history and it felt like somebody purposely went out of their way to steal that piece of history."

Scurfield said someone cut a thick piece of glass before retrieving the bill.

The missing bill has a picture of King George VI and isn't worth more than $100 today, Scurfield said.

"The value is very much sentimental," she said.

"And if anybody knows the whereabouts of this bill, or if anyone took the bill, we would gladly appreciate it back. No questions asked if it can be safely returned."