First National Bank, Chaska, MN (Charter 8378)

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ca.1910 image of the early First National Bank building.

First National Bank, Chaska, MN (Chartered 1906 - Closed (Merger) 2005)

Town History

2022 photo of the early First National Bank building. Courtesy of Sullivan Labno.
ca.1920 photo of the interior of the early First National Bank building with cashier Charles Degen.Courtesy of Images of America: Carver County.
ca.1930 postcard of the later First National Bank building, which is still standing today.

Chaska is located in Carver County, Minnesota 20 miles west of Minneapolis. With a current population of 26,000 Chaska is much larger today then its population of roughly 2000 throughout the National Banknote issuing period. The name "Chaska" is derived from a Dakota word often given as a name to the first born male child. Records show that David L. Fuller purchased the "Shaska" townsite from Holmes in 1852. In 1857, the townsite was platted by the Shaska Company. In the same year, construction began on the original Carver County Courthouse located where the post office and KleinBank now stand in downtown Chaska. Chaska was incorporated as a village in 1871 and, by special legislative charter, as a city in 1891.

An abundance of high quality clay led to the start of brick making in 1857. By the 1880s, as a result of the clay resources, Chaska was a thriving brick manufacturing center. Bricks were shipped by boat to Saint Paul and, although the city grew as a result of steamboat trade, it was not until the Minneapolis and St. Louis Railway was built through town in 1873 that rapid expansion began. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaska,_Minnesota#cite_note-CityHistory-8

Chaska had one National Bank chartered during the Bank Note Era, and it issued National Bank Notes.

Bank History

On September 20th, 1906 Minnesota Banker John G. Lund organized the First National of Chaska. It was charted just 4 days later with a capital of $25,000 and opened the following day for business on September 25th 1906. The bank must have had a temporary location because construction wasn’t started on the building until October of 1906. At a cost of $3000, the building was a single story (and a basement) 19x50 enameled brick building designed by Fremont D. Orff. This building still stands today and is currently used as a nail salon. Just months after founding the bank, John Lund sold the bank to Charles H. Klein and Christ P. Klein-Brothers who made a fortune off their ownership in the Chaska brickyards. In 1929 a new much larger building was built across the street where the bank remained until its merger in April 2005 into KleinBank of Big Lake, MN.

Official Bank Title(s)

1: The First National Bank of Chaska, MN

Bank Note Types Issued

1902 Plain Back $5 bank note with pen signatures of Charles Degen, Cashier and Charles Klein, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions
Small size 1929 Type 2 $10 bank note with printed signatures of Charles Degen, Cashier and Charles Klein, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions

A total of $337,070 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1906 and 2005. This consisted of a total of 42,538 notes (34,336 large size and 8,202 small size notes).

This bank issued the following Types and Denominations of bank notes:

Series/Type Sheet/Denoms Serial#s Sheet Comments
1902 Red Seal 4x5 1 - 200
1902 Red Seal 3x10-20 1 - 167
1902 Date Back 4x5 1 - 1725
1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 1320
1902 Plain Back 4x5 1726 - 5025
1902 Plain Back 3x10-20 1321 - 3192
1929 Type 1 6x5 1 - 672
1929 Type 1 6x10 1 - 322
1929 Type 1 6x20 1 - 108
1929 Type 2 5 1 - 984
1929 Type 2 10 1 - 486
1929 Type 2 20 1 - 120

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1906 - 2005):

Presidents:

Cashiers:

Other Bank Note Signers

  • There are currently no known Vice President or Assistant Cashier bank note signers for this bank.

Wiki Links

Sources

  • Chaska, MN, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaska,_Minnesota
  • 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
  • Minneapolis Journal October 21st 1906
  • Mankato Free Press October 5th, 1906