City National Bank, Niles, OH (Charter 4977)

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1882 Brown Back $20 bank note
1882 Brown Back $20 bank note with pen signatures of William Herbert, Cashier and Abner G. Webb, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

City National Bank, Niles, OH (Chartered 1894 - Liquidated 1905)

Town History

A 1916 McKinley gold $1 commemorative coin.
A 1916 McKinley gold $1 commemorative coin. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

Niles is a city in southern Trumbull County, Ohio, situated at the confluence of the Mahoning River and Mosquito Creek. It is a suburb of the Youngstown–Warren metropolitan area. Niles is best known as the birthplace of William McKinley, the 25th President of the United States. Located in the nation's former industrial belt, the city's economy focused initially on iron manufacturing but later diversified to include steel and glass production. After the decline of the manufacturing sector throughout the northern United States in the 1970s, Niles has adapted to become a retail hub for the northern Mahoning Valley, with development centered around the Eastwood Mall complex and along the U.S. Route 422 corridor. The city's population was 18,443 at the 2020 census. The population in 1890 was 4,280, growing to 8,361 by 1910.

Niles was founded in 1806 by James Heaton, who owned one of the first iron-ore processing plants in Ohio. The town originally went by the name of Heaton's Furnace but was later renamed Nilestown, after Hezekiah Niles (editor of the Niles Register, a Baltimore newspaper). In 1843, the name was shortened to Niles. In the early 19th century, Heaton built a forge and, later, a charcoal blast furnace in the area just east of what is now the city's central park, on the west side of Mosquito Creek. Heaton is credited with producing the first bar iron in Ohio.

Niles had two National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and both of those banks issued National Bank Notes.

Bank History

In March 1897, the comptroller of the currency had been advised of the following change for the City National Bank of Niles: F.C. Robbins, vice president, vice John Dunlap.[1]

In June 1901, the comptroller of the currency was notified of the election of Abner G. Webb, president, and T.E. Thomas, vice president of the City National Bank of Niles, Ohio.[2]

On Nov. 10, 1920, Thomas E. Thomas, 59, president of the Niles Fire Brick Co. and director and vice president of the Mahoning Valley Steel Co. died at his home following a long illness of heart trouble. Mr. Thomas built the first blast furnace in Niles and was identified with many businesses in Niles including director of the Niles Car & Manufacturing Co. and of the Niles Trust Company.[3]

On Saturday night, May 6, 1939, Frank C. Robbins, 81, retired manufacturer and Hiram College trustee, died at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Alpha R. Gehr, Shaker Heights. Mr. Robbins, former resident of Hiram, had been spending the winter in Cleveland with Mrs. Robbins. He was a director of the Ohio Box Board Co. of Rittman. For the last 40 years, Mr. and Mrs. Robbins had lived in the Garfield House, a Hiram landmark, which was the home of President James A. Garfield when he was president of the Eclectic Institute, now Hiram College. Mr. Robbins attended the University of Michigan and was a member of Alpha Delta Phi fraternity. He was president of the Niles Car and Manufacturing Co., interurban car builders, until his retirement in 1924. He also was president of the Greendale Co. of Cleveland.[4]

Official Bank Title

1: The City National Bank of Niles, OH

Bank Note Types Issued

A total of $208,850 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1894 and 1905. This consisted of a total of 16,708 notes (16,708 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
1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 4177

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1894 - 1905):

Presidents:

Cashiers:

Other Known Bank Note Signers

  • No other known bank note signers for this bank

Bank Note History Links

Sources

  • Niles, OH, 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
  1. The Cincinnati Enquirer, Cincinnati, OH, Tue., Mar. 2, 1897.
  2. The Cincinnati Enquirer, Cincinnati, OH, Tue., June 18, 1901.
  3. The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, OH, Thu., Nov. 11, 1920.
  4. The Akron Beacon Journal, Akron, OH, Mon., May 8, 1939.