First National Bank, Geneva, AL (Charter 5714)

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NEEDED: a contemporary postcard or photo of the bank.
NEEDED: a contemporary postcard or photo of the bank.

First National Bank, Geneva, AL (Chartered 1901 - Liquidated 1909)

Town History

Geneva is a city in and the county seat of Geneva County, Alabama. It was incorporated in 1875 and is part of the Dothan, Alabama Metropolitan Statistical Area. Since 1940, it has been the largest city of Geneva County, and had a population of 4,452 as of the 2010 census. In 1900 the population was 1,032.

Geneva is located south of the center of Geneva County at the confluence of the Pea River with the Choctawhatchee River. Alabama State Route 52 passes through the city north of downtown, leading northeast 11 miles to Hartford. Dothan is 34 miles to the northeast via Route 52. Alabama State Route 27 passes through the center of Geneva, leading north 22 miles to Enterprise and southwest 5 miles to the Florida border.

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

Bank History

  • Organized December 4, 1900
  • Chartered February 15, 1901
  • Opened for business February 18, 1901
  • Succeeded Bank of Geneva
  • Liquidated May 1, 1909

On February 15, 1901, Charles G. Dawes, Comptroller of the Currency, authorized The First National Bank of Geneva to begin the business of banking. The bank opened its doors on Monday, February 18, 1901 with the following officers: W.E. Holloway, president; L. Bernheimer, vice president; J.R. Clark, cashier; E. Holloway, J.R. Clark, Daniel [missing], G.S. Kelley and G.H. Holloway, directors.

Photo of Ulay W. Black from a 1909 advertisement. He was an assistant cashier of the First National Bank of Geneva, Alabama. In 1909 Mr. Black accepted the cashier position in the Butler County Bank. Shown are officers: W.E. Holloway, president; W.R. Boone, vice president; Ulay W. Black, cashier; Boyce M. Rains, assistant cashier. The directors were W.T. Faster, W.R. Boone, W.E. Morris, E. Lobman, Zema Shepherd, J.C. Watson, Leo Strassberger, W.E. Holloway, L. Bernheimer, and Ulay W. Black. The bank had Capital Stock of $25,000 and was designated a State Repository. The ad states "Loans made on approved collateral. Methods Liberal and Progressive."
Photo of Ulay W. Black from a 1909 advertisement. He was an assistant cashier of the First National Bank of Geneva, Alabama. In 1909 Mr. Black accepted the cashier position in the Butler County Bank.

Mr. Ulay W. Black was an assistant cashier, but accepted the position of cashier at the Butler County Bank at Georgiana on August 23, 1906, under the president, W.E. Holloway. Mr. Black becomes president of the Butler County Bank and served as chairman of the agricultural committee of the Alabama Bankers' Association before his untimely death at the age of 49 from influenza.

William E. Holliday, a graduate of the Alabama State University (1888) and its law school (1890), organized a number of banks in Alabama before doing the same in New York. A list, likely incomplete, follows:

  • The Inter-State Bank, Florala, AL (President, 1904)
  • Phoenix-Girard Bank, Girard AL (Organized 1904)
  • Butler County Bank at Georgiana, AL (President, 1909)
  • The Fort Deposit Bank of Fort Deposit, AL (President 1909)
  • Montgomery Bank and Trust Company, Montgomery, AL (President, 1909...1910; VP 1911)
  • Hungarian American Bank, NY (President; active VP 1910)
  • Farmers and Merchants Bank, Goodwater, AL (President)
  • Peoples Saving Bank, Chilton Co., Tallassee, AL (President, 1912)
  • Bank of Luverne, Luverne, AL (President, 1902...1910)
  • Bank of Auburn, AL (President (resigned Feb. 1912))
  • Clay County Bank, Ashland, AL (President, 1909..1911)
  • The Elmore County Bank, Eclectic, AL (organized 1911)

On May 1, 1909 the First National Bank of Geneva closed and was succeeded by Bank of Geneva.

Official Bank Title(s)

1: The First National Bank of Geneva, AL

Bank Note Types Issued

1882 Brown Back $20 bank note with pen signatures of J.R. Clark, Cashier and William E. Holloway, President
1882 Brown Back $20 bank note with pen signatures of J.R. Clark, Cashier and William E. Holloway, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

A total of $157,000 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1901 and 1909. This consisted of a total of 12,560 notes (12,560 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 - 3100
1882 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 40

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1901 - 1909):

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

  • Geneva, AL, 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
  • The Geneva Journal, Geneva, AL, Thu., Feb. 21, 1901.
  • The Geneva Journal, Geneva, AL, Thu., Mar. 7, 1901.
  • The Luverne Journal and the Crenshaw County News, Luverne, AL, Thu., Dec. 4, 1902.
  • The Greenville Advocate, Greenville, AL, Wed., Oct. 20, 1909.
  • Goodwater Enterprise, Goodwater, AL, Fri., May 20, 1910.
  • The Montgomery Advertiser, Montgomery, AL, Tue., Mar. 21, 1911.
  • The Montgomery Advertiser, Montgomery, AL, Fri., Feb. 2, 1912.
  • The Montgomery Advertiser, Montgomery, AL, Thu., Mar. 4, 1926.
  • Chattanooga Daily Times, Chattanooga, TN, Thu., June 4, 1931.
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