First National Bank, Midland, PA (Charter 8311)

Postcard of the First National Bank of Midland, Pennsylvania on Midland Avenue and 7th Street ca1910s. In 2011 a new building was constructed on this site keeping the look of the original building. Courtesy of Adam Stroup

First National Bank, Midland, PA (Chartered 1906 - Closed (Merger) 1985)

Town History

Midland is a borough incorporated in 1906 and located along the Ohio River in Beaver County, Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the borough population was 2,635.

Pennsylvania Route 68 (Midland Avenue) is the main street through the community, leading east into Industry and west to Glasgow and the Ohio border. Pennsylvania Route 168 joins PA-68 along Midland Avenue through the center of town, but splits off to the south to cross the Ohio River via the Shippingport Bridge, and climbs out of the river valley to the north via Fairview Road.

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

Bank History

Organized May 5, 1906
Chartered Jul 25, 1906
Opened for business Oct 1, 1906
Bank was Open past 1935
For Bank History after 1935 see FDIC Bank History website
Merged into Century National Bank & Trust Company in Rochester, PA, Dec 9, 1985

In July, 1906, the Comptroller of the Currency authorized the organization of the First National Bank of Midland with capital stock of $50,000. The officers were President Charles, McKnight, Vice President E.J. Allison, and Cashier T.E. Poe. The National Bank of Western Pennsylvania and the Hanover National Bank of New York City were approved as its reserve agents.

Located at Midland Ave. and Seventh Street, the First National Bank had over $60,000 in deposits and had erected a $20,000 bank building after only a year of operations. Midland was created as an industrial town. Where farmers had once planted crops looking for a big harvest, real estate men also looked for their harvest that they knew would follow after the immense steel plants were established 12 miles below Beaver on the Cleveland & Pittsburgh branch of the Pennsylvania Railroad system. Not all boom towns were out West; Midland was one of Greater Pittsburgh's growth areas.

Henry C. Fownes, president of the Carrie Furnace Co. and president of the Midland Steel Co. had as treasurer Charles McKnight, president of the National Bank of Western Pennsylvania. J. Ramsey Speer held the office of vice president under Mr. Fownes. By 1907, nearly $3,000,000 had ben invested in the enterprise and thousands of men were working at their furnaces, coke ovens and mills. Limestone was secured near New Castle and tracts of coal land up the Monongahela River had been leased. Midland Steel operated its own railroad from the Cleveland & Pittsburgh line; the Pittsburgh & Lake Erie railroad was just five miles away over the hills.

In preparation, over two miles of riverfront were bought by Midland Steel Co. in 1905. Midland offered clean air, excellent drainage, good water and a beautiful view of the Ohio valley. Over 800 of the 1200 acres were reserved for manufacturing. Five blast furnaces were planned to be built by 1909 as well as a rail mill and a blooming mill.

Town manager Rice planned improvements including paving the entire length of Midland Ave, 65 feet wide, with brick from the Midland Land Co. Sewer lines were planned for a half dozen streets and provided with sidewalks for an estimated 200 houses underway. A trolley would connect Midland with Beaver via a double track line down to Industry. Many workmen lived in East Liverpool and Wellsville, Ohio and had to travel to Midland on a special train.

On December 9, 1985, the merger of National Bank of Beaver County, Midland National Bank and Century National Bank became official. A. Dean Heasley, president and chief executive officer of Century announced that approval was received from the state and federal regulatory agencies and the new institution would be known as Century National Bank. The new institution would have assets of $200 million and 12 offices in four counties with its headquarters remaining in Rochester to oversee the 11 other offices stretching to the Ohio border to Moon Township and southwestern Butler County. John M. Finley of Midland and Harry J. Johnston of Beaver County announced their retirements.

Official Bank Title(s)

1: The First National Bank of Midland, PA

Bank Note Types Issued

1902 Red Seal $10 bank note, serial number 1, with pen signatures of Thomas E. Poe, Cashier and Charles McKnight Jr., President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

1929 Type 2 $10 bank note with printed signatures of Charles A. Finley, Cashier and Thomas E. Poe, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

A total of $1,099,640 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1906 and 1985. This consisted of a total of 109,964 notes (89,516 large size and 20,448 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	4x10	1 - 650
1902 Date Back	4x10	1 - 7300
1902 Plain Back	4x10	7301 - 21729
1929 Type 1	6x10	1 - 2778
1929 Type 2	10	1 - 3780

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1906 - 1985):

Presidents:

Cashiers:

Thomas Edgar Poe, 1907-1919
George Moredock Hawkins, 1920-1923
Charles Alexander Finley, 1928-1935

Other Bank Note Signers

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

Wiki Links

Sources

Midland, PA, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midland,_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://bbdata.banknotehistory.com
The Pittsburgh Press, Pittsburgh, PA, Fri., July 27, 1906.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Pittsburgh, PA, Sun., Apr. 21, 1907.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Pittsburgh, PA, Wed., Dec. 4, 1985.