- -Aug. 1, 1854, the Province of Canada proclaimed the Currency Act, which tied the dollar to the gold standard, meaning the value of the dollar was fixed in terms of the price of gold. The dollar was also valued at par with the U.S. dollar. The Canadian dollar remained on the gold standard until the First World War.
- -The Canadian and U.S. dollars were more or less at par until the U.S. civil war began and the U.S. currency's fortunes started falling. On July 11, 1864, the U.S. dollar was worth 38 Canadian cents, the loonie's all-time high against the greenback.
- -As the First World War began, all major countries, including Canada, de-coupled from the gold standard. The Canadian and U.S. dollars remained close to parity during the war. After it ended, however, the Canadian dollar weakened to a low of 84 cents US.
- -Canada returned to the gold standard on July 1, 1926, but came off it again in 1931, following a decision by the U.K. to do so. The Canadian currency lost value after that decision, falling to about 90 cents US in the spring of 1932.
- -Exchange controls were implemented during the Second World War, fixing the dollar at 90.91 cents US buying and 90.09 cents US selling.
- -At the end of the war, the countries involved in establishing the International Monetary Fund set currencies at fixed values. However, Canada went against the IMF requirements and allowed the dollar to float freely. The Canadian dollar traded above the greenback from 1950 until 1962, hitting a high of $1.0614 US on Aug. 20, 1957.
- -The Canadian dollar began to decline, and in 1962 was returned to a fixed rate of around 92.50 cents US, staying there until 1970.
- -Canada returned to a floating currency rate in 1970. The currency climbed sharply to about 97 cents US and moved above the U.S. dollar by 1972.
- -On April 25, 1974, the Canadian currency hit what was then a modern high of $1.0443 US.
- -The Canadian dollar reached parity with the U.S. dollar on Nov. 25, 1976, for the last time until 2007.
- -On April 6, 2010, the Canadian dollar returned to par with the U.S. dollar, due in part to the perception that Canada's economy is a safe place to invest.
