First National Bank, Lincolnton, NC (Charter 6744)

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A 1920 advertisement for the First National Bank of Lincolnton, North Carolina. Ad reads Are you ready for Opportunity. Even if you are unprepared we might help you. At best you will be welcome if you will call. A small sketch of the bank.
A 1920 advertisement for the First National Bank of Lincolnton, North Carolina.

First National Bank, Lincolnton, NC (Chartered 1903 - Open past 1935)

Town History

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

Lincolnton is a city in Lincoln County, North Carolina, within the Charlotte metropolitan area. Lincolnton is northwest of Charlotte, on the South Fork of the Catawba River. The city is the county seat of Lincoln County.

In June 1780 during the American Revolutionary War, the future site of Lincolnton was the site of the Battle of Ramsour's Mill, a small engagement in which local Loyalists were defeated by pro-independence forces. Some historians consider the battle significant because it disrupted Loyalists organizing in the region at a crucial time.

After the Revolution, the legislature organized a new county by splitting this area from old Tryon County (named in the colonial era for a royally appointed governor). The 1780 battle site was chosen for the seat of Lincoln County. The new city and the county were named for Major General Benjamin Lincoln, who served in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War and was selected by Washington to receive the sword of Cornwallis upon his surrender at Yorktown. The population was 10,486 at the 2010 census. In 1900, the population was 898 growing to 2,413 by 1910.

Lincolnton had two National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, The First National Bank and The County National Bank (Charter 8184). Both of these banks issued National Bank Notes.

Bank History

  • Organized April 16, 1903
  • Chartered April 27, 1903
  • Bank was Open past 1935
  • Merged with North Carolina National Bank (NCNB) of Charlotte, December 31, 1981

On Monday, June 15, The First National Bank of Lincolnton opened for business with capital stock of $30,000.

E.O. Anderson, the assistant cashier of the First National Bank of Lumberton, resigned to accept a position as assistant cashier in the First National Bank of Lincolnton. He was scheduled to begin his new duties on January 1, 1906.

In February 1907, the bank announced the opening of its new savings department paying 4% interest per annum. The officers were J.A. Abernethy, president; D.E. Rhyne, vice president; Claude Ramsaur, cashier; and E.O. Anderson, assistant cashier.

On Friday, January 15, 1915, the stockholders elected the following directors: C.E. Childs, D.K. Rhyne, John K. Cline, J.H. Ramsaur, and K.O. Anderson. Immediately after the election of directors, the directors met and elected the following officers: D.E. Rhyne, president; C.E. Childs, vice president; M.H. Cline, cashier.

On Thursday, January 12, 1922, the following officers and directors were re-elected at the stockholders' meeting: President, D.E. Rhyne; 1st Vice President, C.E. Childs; 2nd Vice President, E.O. Anderson; Cashier, M.H. Cline; Asst. Cashier, M.H. Kuhn; Directors, D.E. Rhyne, C.E Childs, E.O. Anderson, Jno. K. Cline and M.H. Cline. The last statement published showed total resources of $1,309,488.27.

On April 30, 1933, at a meeting of the board of directors, E.O. Anderson of Charlotte was named president succeeding the late D.E. Rhyne. Mr. Anderson was well known throughout Lincoln County and the state and had been on the board of directors of the First National since 1908 and was vice president for a number of years. He was a banker of wide experience and also was for a number of years a vice president of the Independence Trust Company of Charlotte. D.H. Mauney, a member of the board of directors, was named as a vice president of the bank. Mr. Mauney, a well-known and prominent manufacturer of Lincoln County, was secretary-treasurer and general manager of the Long Shoals Cotton mills and president of the Mauney Steel Company commission house of Philadelphia. He had been chairman of the Lincoln County board of commissioners for the previous several years. The other officers were M.H. Cline, vice president; H.W. Rudisill cashier; and M.B. Winstead, assistant cashier.

In April 1970, the First National Bank of Mooresville was merged into First National Bank of Lincolnton, creating Carolina First National Bank. G. Harold Myrick of Lincolnton became president and chief executive officer of Carolina First National. On November 27, 1970, Myrick announced his retirement; he would be 65 in January and planned to return to his native Halifax County in the spring. He began his banking career in 1932, became president of the First National Bank of Lincolnton in 1967 and continued in this position following the merger last April. A.G. (Tommy) Thompson of Charlotte, formerly of Burlington, was appointed executive vice president and chief executive officer of Carolina First National Bank, effective Dec. 1. He was senior vice president and Western Region executive with North Carolina National Bank. He will continue as president until Feb. 1. Carolina First National, with total assets of about $34 million, had seven offices in Lincolnton, Mooresville, Cherryville and Denver. Thompson was a 52-year-old native of Caswell County and a graduate of Elon College. Immediately after leaving Elon, he joined Commercial Credit Co. and for five years worked in Greensboro and Wilmington. His business career was interrupted in 1941 and again in 1951 while he served on active duty with the U.S. Navy. His banking career began in 1953 when he joined Security National Bank (now NCNB) and for seven years served in Wilmington, Burlington and Durham. He became administrative and credit review officer in the instalment loan department in Greensboro in 1950 when Security National merged with American Commercial Bank to form NCNB.

In December 1981, North Carolina National Bank (NCNB) of Charlotte received approval from the U.S. Comptroller of the Currency to merge with Carolina First National Bank, Lincolnton. Carolina First National, with $107.7 million in assets had 10 offices in Lincolnton, Cherryville, Boger City, Lowesville, Denver, Mooresville, and Troutman. The merger with NCNB which had assets of $71 billion, was expected to be completed by December 31st.

On February 5, 1982, the board of directors of Bancshares of North Carolina, Inc., Raleigh-based parent of Bank of North Carolina, voted to accept a $322 million proposal to merge with Charlotte's North Carolina National Bank (NCNB). If approved by Bank of North Carolina shareholders, NCNB directors, and regulatory agencies it would be North Carolina's largest bank merger. NCNB with deposits of $52 billion was the largest bank in the state. Bank of North Carolina, 10th largest, had $348 million in deposits. NCNB stood to gain new markets particularly in Eastern North Carolina where Bank of North Carolina had its largest presence.

Official Bank Title(s)

1: The First National Bank of Lincolnton, NC

Bank Note Types Issued

1902 Date Back $20 bank note with printed signatures of M.H. Cline, Cashier and D.E. Rhyne, President.
1902 Date Back $20 bank note with printed signatures of M.H. Cline, Cashier and D.E. Rhyne, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com
1929 Type 1 $20 bank note with printed signatures of H.W. Rudisill, Cashier and D.E. Rhyne, President.
1929 Type 1 $20 bank note with printed signatures of H.W. Rudisill, Cashier and D.E. Rhyne, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

A total of $1,100,660 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1903 and 1935. This consisted of a total of 137,309 notes (111,108 large size and 26,201 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 - 1730
1902 Red Seal 3x10-20 1 - 1746
1902 Date Back 4x5 1 - 4300
1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 2770
1902 Plain Back 4x5 4301 - 14623
1902 Plain Back 3x10-20 2771 - 9678
1929 Type 1 6x5 1 - 2032
1929 Type 1 6x10 1 - 926
1929 Type 1 6x20 1 - 296
1929 Type 2 5 1 - 4202
1929 Type 2 10 1 - 2015
1929 Type 2 20 1 - 460

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1903 - 1936):

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

  • Lincolnton, NC, 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 News-Herald, Morganton, NC, Thu., June 25, 1903.
  • The Raleigh Times, Raleigh, NC, Sat., Dec. 16, 1905.
  • The Lincoln County News, Lincolnton, NC, Fri., Feb. 8, 1907.
  • The News and Observer, Raleigh, NC, Mon., Jan. 18, 1915.
  • The Lincoln County News, Lincolnton, NC, Thu., Jan. 8, 1920.
  • The Lincoln County News, Lincolnton, NC, Thu., Jan. 13, 1921.
  • The Lincoln County News, Lincolnton, NC, Mon., Jan. 16, 1922.
  • The Charlotte Observer, Charlotte, NC, Thu., Mar. 2, 1933.
  • The Daily Times-News, Burlington, NC, Fri., Nov. 27, 1970.
  • The Charlotte Observer, Charlotte, NC, Fri., Dec. 4, 1981.
  • The Charlotte Observer, Charlotte, NC, Sat., Feb. 6, 1982.