Columbia National Bank, Columbia, PA (Charter 641)
Columbia National Bank, Columbia, PA (Chartered 1864 - Liquidated 1917)
Town History
Columbia, formerly Wright's Ferry, is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is 28 miles southeast of Harrisburg, on the east bank of the Susquehanna River, across from Wrightsville and York County and just south of U.S. Route 30.
The settlement was founded in 1726 by Colonial English Quakers from Chester County, led by entrepreneur and evangelist John Wright. Establishment of the eponymous Wright's Ferry, the first commercial Susquehanna crossing in the region, inflamed territorial conflict with neighboring Maryland but brought growth and prosperity to the small town, which was just a few votes shy of becoming the new United States' capital. Though besieged for a short while by Civil War destruction, Columbia remained a lively center of transport and industry throughout the 19th century, once serving as a terminus of the Pennsylvania Canal. Later, however, the Great Depression and 20th-century changes in economy and technology sent the borough into decline. It is notable today as the site of one of the world's few museums devoted entirely to horology.
In 1724, John Wright, an English Quaker, traveled to the Columbia area (then a part of Chester County) to explore the land and proselytize to a Native American tribe, the Shawnee, who had established a settlement along Shawnee Creek. Wright built a log cabin nearby on a tract of land first granted to George Beale by William Penn in 1699, and stayed for more than a year. The area was then known as "Shawanatown".
When Wright returned in 1726 with companions Robert Barber and Samuel Blunston, they began developing the area, Wright building a house about a hundred yards from the edge of the Susquehanna River in the area of today's South Second and Union streets. Susanna Wright later built Wright's Ferry Mansion, what is now the oldest existing house in Columbia, dating to 1738. She lived in this house with her brother James and his wife Rhoda, and possibly the first of their many children. In 1729, after Wright had petitioned William Penn's son to create a new county, the provincial government took land from Chester County to establish Lancaster County, the fourth county in Pennsylvania. County residents – Indians and colonists alike – regularly traveled to Wright's home to file papers and claims, seek government assistance and redress of issues, and register land deeds. The area was particularly attractive to Pennsylvania Dutch settlers. During this time, the town was called "Wright's Ferry".
As of the 2020 census, Columbia had a population of 10,222. In 1860 the population was 5,007, peaking in 1900 at 12,316.
Columbia had three National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and all three of those banks issued National Bank Notes. Including the Columbia National Bank (Charter 641), the First National Bank (Charter 371) and the Central National Bank (Charter 3873).
Bank History
- Organized December 13, 1864
- Chartered December 24, 1864
- Succeeded Columbia Bank
- Liquidated April 14, 1917
- Consolidated with 371 which assumed its circulation (First NB/First Columbia NB, Columbia, PA)
Columbia Bank and Bridge Company
At an election held on Wednesday, November 12th, 1851, the following persons were elected directors of the Columbia Bank and Bridge Company: David Rinehart, Samuel Patterson, William Mathiot, Thomas Lloyd, William H. Oswald, William F. Given, Rudolph Williams, E.J. Sneeder, John H. Hershey, Daniel Herr, John Lowrey, Dr. Barton Evans, and George Bogle. David Rinehart, Esq., was unanimously re-elected President.
In November 1853, at the election for Directors of the Columbia Bank and Bridge Company, the following gentlemen were elected: John Cooper, Jos. Detwiler, Dr. Barton Evans, John Lowry, George Bogle, John W. Clark, B.F. Hiestand, Jacob S. Mann, Abraham Zook, John Kline, Isaac Hinkle, John A. Hook, and Geo. Wike.
In November 1854, at the election for Directors of the Columbia Bank, the following gentlemen were elected: John Cooper, Joseph Detwiler, B.F. Hiestand, Jacob S. Mann, Abraham Zook, John Kline, Isaac Hinkle, Samuel D. Young, William McConkey, Thomas Lloyd, John H. Hershey, J.G. Hess, Wm. F. Given. This Bank has declared a dividend of 5 per cent, out of the profits of the last six months payable on demand.
In November 1855, the following named gentlemen were elected Directors of the Columbia Bank: John Cooper, Thomas Lloyd, Abraham Zook, Isaac Hinkle, B.F. Hiestand, John Kline, Wm. F. Given, Rudolph Williams, S.D. Young, William McConkey, Dr. Barton Evans, John Lowry, and George S. Mann. John Cooper was elected President.
At an election of Directors of the Columbia Bank held on Wednesday, November 14th, 1860, the following gentlemen were chosen: Dr. Barton Evans, Thomas Lloyd, Wm. McConkey, George Bogle, Henry John, B.F. Hiestand, Joseph H. Black, A.H. Glatz, Samuel Truscott, Rudolph Williams, Michael H. Moore, David Wilson, and Aaron Gable. At a meeting of the Board held on the 20th of November, Dr. Barton Evans was re-elected President.
From the Auditor General's Report showing the condition of the Banks and Savings Institutions of the Commonwealth, the following was gleaned for Lancaster County banks showing their condition on the first discount day in November 1862.
| Banks | Assets | Capital Paid In | Circulation | Dividends May 6, 1862 | Dividends Nov. 4, 1862 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Farmers' Bank, Lancaster | 1,050,883.30 | 371,900 | 360,277 | 3.5% | 4% |
| Lancaster County Bank | 1,064,465.62 | 269,455 | 520,355 | 4% | 4% |
| Columbia Bank | 1,476,162.48 | 322,500 | 785,152 | 3% | 4% |
| Mount Joy Bank | 269,893.33 | 54,710 | 171,179 | 3.5% | 4% |
| Farmers' Bank of Mount Joy | 53,298.27 | 35,000 | 8,576 | not recorded | not recorded |
Conversion to a National Bank
On November 12, 1864, the stockholders voted to become an association for the purpose of banking under the laws of the United States as provided for by the Act of Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, approved the 22nd of August, 1864. The directors having procured the authority of the owners of more than two-thirds of the Capital Stock to make the organization certificate required therefore by the laws of the United States.
On Tuesday, January 9, 1866, at a meeting of the stockholders of the Columbia National Bank, the following directors were elected: James Myers, E.K. Smith, Samuel Musselman, Geo. W. Mehaffey, George Bogle, R. Williams, C. Tyson, Henry Hinkle, Henry Copenheffer.
On January 13, 1914, the directors elected were: James A. Meyers, M.S. Shuman, Matthew Kerr, Alfred C. Bruner, Dr. S.S. Mann, M. Bachenheimer, P.G. Breneman, John W. Steacy and Joseph Janson.
In January 1916, stockholders of the Columbia National Bank elected the following directors: Hugh M. North, Jr., Esq., S.S. Mann, Joseph Janson, M. Machenheimer, Alfred Brunner, Esq., John W. Stacy, Matthew Kerr, P.G. Breneman, and Amos Hollinger.
On January 9, 1917, the directors were: Hugh M. North, Jr., Esq., S.S. Mann, Joseph Janson, Edward H. Staman, Alfred Brunner, Esq., John W. Stacy, P.G. Breneman, Amos Hollinger, and Horace Detweller. The stockholders of the First National Bank of Columbia placed on their board of directors the president and cashier of the Columbia National Bank, and the stockholders of the Columbia National Bank placed on their board the cashier and two of the directors of the First. This meant that the two banks would before long consolidate, making one bank with capital of $500,000, surplus of $124,000 and deposits of about a million and a quarter. The Columbia National had under various names been in existence almost 108 years. The First National was organized nearly 54 years ago.
On Saturday, February 24, 1917, the stockholders of the Columbia National Bank met to vote upon the question of consolidation with the First National Bank and the result was in favor of the consolidation. The First National Bank stockholders met on Friday afternoon and also favored such action. It was expected that by the middle of April the banks would he combined under the name of the First-Columbia National Bank of Columbia, and occupy the Columbia Bank building. The effects of the First National Bank were moved to the building of the Columbia National Bank late Saturday evening and the following Monday, April 16, the doors opened under the name of the First-Columbia National Bank and the old charter, No. 371, of the First National.
For more history and photos, see The First National Bank Museum.
Official Bank Title(s)
1: The Columbia National Bank, Columbia, PA
Bank Note Types Issued
A total of $2,160,150 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1864 and 1917. This consisted of a total of 194,574 notes (194,574 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 - 7900 Original Series 3x10-20 1 - 12700 Original Series 50-100 1 - 467 Series 1875 4x5 1 - 750 Series 1875 3x10-20 1 - 10680 Series 1875 50-100 1 - 334 1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 7519 1902 Red Seal 3x10-20 1 - 2000 1902 Date Back 4x5 1 - 3755 1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 2939
Bank Presidents and Cashiers
Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1864 - 1917):
Presidents:
- Barton Evans, 1865-1866
- James Myers, 1867-1869
- John Cooper, 1870-1874
- George Bogle, 1875-1878
- Samuel Shoch, 1879-1884
- James Alfred Meyers, 1885-1913
- Hugh M. North, Jr., 1915-1916
Cashiers:
- Samuel Shoch, 1865-1878
- Simon C. May, 1879-1886
- Joseph Janson, 1887-1916
Other Bank Note Signers
- There are currently no known Vice President or Assistant Cashier bank note signers for this bank.
Wiki Links
- Pennsylvania Bank Note History
- General information on Columbia (Wikipedia)
- General information on Lancaster County (Wikipedia)
- General information on Pennsylvania (Wikipedia)
Sources
- Columbia, PA, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia,_Pennsylvania
- 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
- The Lancaster Examiner, Lancaster, PA, Wed., Nov. 26, 1851.
- The Lancaster Examiner, Lancaster, PA, Wed., Nov. 16, 1853.
- The Lancaster Examiner, Lancaster, PA, Wed., Nov. 15, 1854.
- Lancaster Intelligencer, Lancaster, PA, Tue., Nov. 27, 1855.
- York Gazette, York, PA, Tue., Dec. 4, 1860.
- Lancaster Intelligencer, Lancaster, PA, Tue., Jan. 27, 1863.
- The Daily Evening Express, Lancaster, PA, Fri., Dec. 30 1864.
- The Daily Evening Express, Lancaster, PA, Sat., Jan. 13, 1866.
- Lancaster New Era, Lancaster, PA, Tue., Jan. 13, 1914.
- Intelligencer Journal, Lancaster, PA, Tue., Jan. 11, 1916.
- The Inquirer, Lancaster, PA, Sat., Jan. 13, 1917.
- The News-Journal, Lancaster, PA, Mon. Feb. 26, 1917.
- The News-Journal, Lancaster, PA, Mon., Apr. 16, 1917.