Chattahoochee National Bank, Columbus, GA (Charter 1630)
Chattahoochee National Bank, Columbus, GA (Chartered 1866 - Receivership 1895)
Town History
Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee County, with which it officially merged in 1970; the original merger excluded Bibb City, which joined in 2000 after dissolving its own city charter.
Columbus is the second most populous city in Georgia (after Atlanta), and fields the state's fourth-largest metropolitan area. At the 2020 U.S. census, Columbus had a population of 206,922, with 328,883 in the Columbus metropolitan statistical area. The metro area joins the nearby Alabama cities of Auburn and Opelika to form the Columbus–Auburn–Opelika combined statistical area, which had a population of 563,967 in 2020.
Columbus lies 100 miles southwest of Atlanta. Fort Moore, the United States Army's Maneuver Center of Excellence and a major employer, is located south of the city in southern Muscogee and Chattahoochee counties. Columbus is home to museums and tourism sites, including the National Infantry Museum, dedicated to the U.S. Army's Infantry Branch.
Founded in 1828 by an act of the Georgia Legislature, Columbus was situated at the beginning of the navigable portion of the Chattahoochee River and on the last stretch of the Federal Road before entering Alabama. The city was named for Christopher Columbus. The plan for the city was drawn up by Dr. Edwin L. DeGraffenried, who placed the town on a bluff overlooking the river. Edward Lloyd Thomas (surveyor) was selected to lay out the town on 1,200 acres. Across the river to the west, where Phenix City, Alabama, is now located, lived several tribes of the Creek and other Georgia and Alabama indigenous peoples.
Columbus had four National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, the Chattahoochee National Bank (Charter 1630), the National Bank/First National Bank (Charter 2338), the Third National Bank (Charter 3937), and the Fourth National Bank (Charter 4691), and all four of those banks issued National Bank Notes.
Bank History
- Organized November 1, 1865
- Chartered January 22, 1866
- Receivership December 7, 1895
On January 22, 1866, Freeman Clarke, Comptroller of the Currency, authorized the Chattahoochee National Bank of Columbus to begin the business of banking.[2] The officers were John Rice, president; Alvah Trowbridge, cashier; John W. King, Thos. DeWolf, Robert L. Bass, Sam'l H. Hill, and John Rice, directors. The bank was located in the old Columbus Bank building.[3]
On Tuesday, January 11, 1870, stockholders met and re-elected the following directors: R.L. Mott, G.P. Swift, Jos. Kyle, S.H. Hill, and H.H. Epping. At a meeting of the directors the same day, Mr. H.H. Epping was re-elected president and H.W. Edwards was re-appointed cashier.[4]
In October 1880, the directors were H.H. Epping, G.P. Swift, R.L. Mott, Jos. Kyle, J.M. Smith, C.C. McGehee, and H.W. Edwards. The officers were H.H. Epping, president; H.W. Edwards, cashier; and R.M. Mulford, assistant cashier. The bank had capital $100,000, Surplus $20,000, undivided profits, $12,864.94. To date the Chattahoochee National had paid $141,000 in total dividends.[5]
In October 1886, the directors were Geo. P. Swift, Jno. F. Flournoy, Jos. Kyle, A. Wittich, Abram Illges, and Geo. P. Swift, Jr. The officers were H.H. Epping, president; R.M. Mulford, cashier; and E.H. Epping, assistant cashier. The bank had capital $100,000, Surplus $75,000, undivided profits, $14,555.05.[6]
In January 1895, the officers were H.H. Epping, president; J.F. Flournoy, vice president; and E.H. Epping, cashier.[7]
On Friday, November 29, 1895, the Chattahoochee National Bank closed its doors with inability to realize promptly given as the reason for the failure. The Chattahoochee National for the past 30 years had been doing business at 1205 Broad Street. The suspension was necessitated by the continuous withdrawal of deposits and the inability of the bank to realize promptly on its assets. The legal holiday was observed on Thursday and directors met and decided upon the course of action stated. Patrons of the institution were greatly surprised upon opening Friday to find a sign stating "Closed by order of the board of directors." President H.H. Epping, Sr., and vice president J.F. Flournoy stated that the failure was due largely to the panic of '92 and '93 from which the bank had been unable to recover and during which time there had been considerable shrinkage in values. They stated that every depositor would receive 100 cents on the dollar and stockholder would be paid a handsome dividend on their stock. The amount due depositors was about $120,000. The Chattahoochee National Bank was organized November 1, 1865. The incorporators were Edward L. Jones, John Rice, and A. Trowbridge of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and John W. King, Samuel H. Hill, and Robert L. Bass of Columbus. Operations were begun with Mr. Rice as president and Mr. Trowbridge, cashier. On May 30, 1868, Mr. Trowbridge resigned to accept the position of cashier of the National Bank of North America in New York City, which position he then held. Dr. W.W. Edwards was elected cashier to succeed him. The office of vice president was created in 1894 and Mr. J.F. Flournoy was elected to that office.[8]
In May 1896, Mr. John F. Flournoy, receiver of the Chattahoochee National received authorization from the comptroller of the currency to pay a 25% dividend to depositors. The depositors had been awaiting with great interest the result of the winding up of the affairs of the institution.[9]
On Sunday, July 31, 1904, H.H. Epping, Sr., 84, president of the Columbus Waterworks Company and one of Columbus' oldest citizens, died at his room on Eleventh street at 3:30 o'clock at the afternoon. Mr. Epping was born in Germany, but lived in Columbus nearly all his life. During the life of the Chattahoochee National Bank, Mr. Epping was its president and before that time he was in the banking business in Columbus with Joseph Hanserd, under the firm name of Epping & Hanserd. They did business where the Kern & Loeb building stood and for many years were prosperous financiers.[10]
Official Bank Title
1: The Chattahoochee National Bank of Columbus, GA
Bank Note Types Issued
A total of $445,900 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1866 and 1895. This consisted of a total of 46,112 notes (46,112 large size and No small size notes).
This bank issued the following Types and Denominations of bank notes:
Series/Type Sheet/Denoms Serial#s Sheet Comments Original Series 4x5 1 - 3850 Original Series 3x10-20 1 - 1900 Series 1875 4x5 1 - 500 Series 1875 3x10-20 1 - 2550 1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 2728
Bank Presidents and Cashiers
Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1866 - 1895):
Presidents:
Cashiers:
- Alvah Trowbridge, 1866-1867
- Dr. Hezekiah W. Edwards, 1868-1880
- Randolph Mott Mulford, 1881-1886
- Early Hurt Epping, 1887-1895
Other Known Bank Note Signers
- No other known bank note signers for this bank
Bank Note History Links
Sources
- Columbus, GA, on Wikipedia
- Don C. Kelly, National Bank Notes, A Guide with Prices. 6th Edition (Oxford, OH: The Paper Money Institute, 2008).
- Dean Oakes and John Hickman, Standard Catalog of National Bank Notes. 2nd Edition (Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 1990).
- Banks & Bankers Historical Database (1782-1935), https://spmc.org/bank-note-history-project
- ↑ Ledger-Enquirer, Columbus, GA, Sat., Dec. 25, 1880.
- ↑ Ledger-Enquirer, Columbus, GA, Sun., Feb. 18, 1866.
- ↑ Ledger-Enquirer, Columbus, GA, Sun., Mar. 18, 1866.
- ↑ Daily Columbus Enquirer, Columbus, GA, Wed., Jan. 12, 1870.
- ↑ Ledger-Enquirer, Columbus, GA, Wed., Oct. 13, 1880.
- ↑ Ledger-Enquirer, Columbus, GA, Sun., Oct. 10, 1886.
- ↑ Ledger-Enquirer, Columbus, GA, Thu., Jan. 24, 1895.
- ↑ Ledger-Enquirer, Columbus, GA, Sat., Nov. 30, 1895.
- ↑ The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, GA, Sun., May 3, 1896.
- ↑ The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, GA, Mon., Aug. 1, 1904.