First National Bank, Helena, MT (Charter 1649)

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2019 photo of the old First National Bank building built in 1886. Google Maps

First National Bank, Helena, MT (Chartered 1866 - Receivership 1896)

Town History

Helena is the state capital of the Montana and the county seat of Lewis and Clark County.

Helena was founded as a gold camp during the Montana gold rush, and established on October 30, 1864. The town was named Helena in honor of Helena Township, Scott County, Minnesota, and/or Helena, Arkansas (depending on whether you were a Union or Confederate supporter). Helena was surveyed by Captain John Wood in 1865 for the first time. Thanks to the gold rush, Helena would become a wealthy city, with approximately 50 millionaires inhabiting the area by 1888.

During the National Bank Note Era (1863-1935), the population of Helena was 3,106 in 1870, growing to 13,834 in 1890, and dropping back to 11,803 in 1930. It's highest (and current) population is estimated at 33,124 (2019).

Helena had nine National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and all nine of those banks issued National Bank Notes.

Bank History

Original Series $1 Territorial bank note issued by the First National Bank of Helena, MT, signed by John S. Atchison, Cashier and Samuel T. Hauser, President. Courtesy of Lyn Knight Auctions, www.lynknight.com
1872 First National Bank check, signed by D.C. Corbin, Cashier.
  • Organized Mar 17, 1866
  • Chartered Apr 5, 1866
  • Suspended Jul 27, 1893
  • Resumed Jan 23, 1894
  • Assumed 4406 by consolidation Jan 8 1895 (Helena National Bank, Helena, MT)
  • Closed Sep 4, 1896
  • Receivership Sep 11, 1896


The First National Bank of Helena was the first national bank to be established in Montana Territory.

The bank was originally organized by Samuel T. Hauser as a private bank under then name S.T. Hauser and Company. It received a national charter as the First National Bank of Helena on April 5, 1866, with a capitalization of $100,000. The bank's first officers were S.T. Hauser, president; and Theodore H. Kleinschmidt, Cashier.

Originally housed in a grocery store on Main Street, the bank erected its own building in 1866 at the corner of Main and Wall streets, near where Helena's first gold strike had been made two years before. The building was twice consumed by fire in 1869 and 1874, but was rebuilt each time on the same site. In 1886 a new First National Bank building was erected at the corner of Main and Grand streets, at a cost of between $35,000 and $40,000.

For many years the bank's chief business was the handling of gold dust, which was the accepted medium of exchange. The average price of $17.50 per ounce varied considerably from gulch to gulch, depending on the fineness or the dust. The evaluation and purchase of gold dust was thus a job for an expert and Cashier T.H. Kleinschmidt was such an expert, with the reputed ability to distinguish exactly which gulch a shipment of gold dust came from. In addition to the gold trade, the Bank bought and sold coin and government vouchers and acted as a collection agency. An assay office was operated in connection with the Bank by Augustus Steitz.

Although initially organized to serve the needs of the mines and miners, the First National Bank grew and changed with the times and shifted its emphasis to serving the growing cattle and sheep industries. Under the leadership of officers Hauser (President), A.J. Davis (Vice President), E.W. Knight (Cashier) and T.H. Kleinschmidt (Assistant Cashier) the Bank was strong enough to withstand the severe ranch losses of the winter of 1886-1887 with little adverse effect.

By 1893, Helena had six national banks and several local banks. No other city in the country had a comparable per capita bank capitalization or deposits as Helena. However, the Panic of 1893 brought an end to this prosperity. During a two week period in July 1893 more than a million dollars in coin and currency were withdrawn from Helena's banks. On July 27, the First National Bank suspended operations. With the cooperation of the Bank's depositors and creditors business was resumed on January 23, 1894.

The following December, the First absorbed the Helena National Bank, which had previously merged with the Second National Bank. With the exception of Hauser, the old officers were replaced. Vice President E.D. Edgerton took over the actual operation of the Bank. This new organization, however, could not save the Bank.

In September 1896 the First National Bank closed and a Receiver was appointed. The Bank's failure was due to a combination of national and local problems. Nationally, the currency system and banking laws were inadequate to deal with the major depression of the 1890s. Locally, Helena's economy was in decline. The Bank had been mismanaged for a number of years, with excessive loans granted to bank officers, deficient legal money reserves and excessive overdrafts and overdue paper.

Source: Historical Note for First National Bank Of Helena Records, 1865-1903, Montana Historical Society Research Center Archives, Helena, MT.

Link: archiveswest.orbiscascade.org/ark:/80444/xv79691

Official Bank Title(s)

1891 First National Bank check, signed by T.H. Kleinschmidt, Asst Cashier.
1876 First National Bank letter, signed by E.W. Knight, Cashier.

1: The First National Bank of Helena, MT

Bank Note Types Issued

A total of $524,040 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1866 and 1896. This consisted of a total of 73,326 notes (73,326 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 3x1-2 1 - 3000 Territory
Original Series 4x5 1 - 3300 Territory
Original Series 3x10-20 1 - 1120 Territory
Series 1875 4x5 1 - 3894 Territory
Series 1875 3x10-20 1 - 2539 Territory
1882 Brown Back 4x5 1 - 1900 Territory
1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 1030 Territory
1882 Brown Back 50-100 1 - 214 Territory
1882 Brown Back 4x5 1901 - 2603
1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1031 - 1730
1882 Brown Back 50-100 215 - 291

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

First National Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1866 - 1896):


Presidents:

Cashiers:

Other Known Bank Note Signers

Bank Note History Links

Sources

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