First National Bank, Muncy, PA (Charter 837)
First National Bank, Muncy, PA (Chartered 1865 - Receivership 1892)
Town History
Muncy is a borough in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania. The name Muncy comes from the Munsee Indians who once lived in the area. It is part of the Williamsport, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. Muncy is located on the West Branch of the Susquehanna River, just south of the confluence of Muncy Creek with the river. The population was 2,442 at the 2020 census. In 1860, the population was 1,010 growing to 1,295 by 1890.
About 1787, four brothers Silas, William, Benjamin, and Isaac McCarty, came here from Bucks County. They were of Quaker extraction. William and Benjamin bought 300 acres known as the "John Brady farm." In 1797, ten years after coming to Muncy, Benjamin McCarty conceived the idea of starting a town, and began laying out lots on what is now Main Street, and sold them to different parties. His example was followed by his brother William, north of Water street, and by Isaac Walton. The town was named Pennsborough in honor of William Penn.
On January 19, 1827, with a population of less than 600, the name was changed from Pennsborough to Muncy. This was done because many persons thought it was "too flat and long," and the new name would be more in accordance with the historical associations of the place, and serve to perpetuate the name of the tribe that first dwelt there.
Muncy had two National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and both of those banks issued National Bank Notes.
Bank History
- Organized January 31, 1865
- Chartered February 23, 1865
- Receivership February 9, 1892
In February 1865, the Lewisburg Chronicle noted that preliminary steps had been taken to organize a national bank in Muncy.[1]
In March 1865, the great St. Patrick's Day Flood occurred when warm weather melted the immense bed of snow in the northern mountains followed by a warm, continuous rain. Before daybreak on Saturday, March 18th, the depth of the Susquehanna's waters at Lewisburg were 4.7 feet above the previous record high water mark of 1847. Many bridges were damaged or washed away; one span of the Muncy bridge was gone. The steam saw mill at the mouth of Muncy Creek was thrown from its foundation and swung across the canal bank. Muncy borough was inundated, but suffered less than the upper towns.[2]
On Tuesday, January 21, 1868, at the annual election for directors, the following persons were chosen: Joshua Bowman, Joseph Gudykunst, Robert Montgomery, F.G. Downing, E. Lyon, Jacob Cooke, Baker Langcake, J.M. Bowman, and Henry Johnson. Henry Johnson was elected president and J.M. Bowman, cashier.[3]
On January 10, 1892, the First National Bank of Muncy was closed by E.H. Dengler, national bank examiner. Upon his arrival, the vault could not be opened and an expert was called in. The bank had not been doing a profitable business for some time and met with heavy losses in loaning money. There was $70,000 on deposit at the last statement and a shortage of $40,000 was found. Captain J.M. Bowman was president, Baker Bowman, cashier; and James M. Bowman and B. Langcake, directors.[4] On the 11th, DeLa Green, the cashier and ex-bank examiner for the Western District, was arrested. He was taken from his bed to United States Commissioner Bentley who demanded bail in the sum of $20,000. The president, Capt. John M. Bowman, also acted as cashier during the time DeLa Green was bank examiner.[5]
The trial of Cashier DeLa Green, charged with falsifying the bank's books, began on September 4, 1894, with the jury returning a guilty verdict on September 8th.[6] On September 11, 1894, John M. Bowman, the aged and white-haired president of the wrecked Muncy bank was tried and convicted of making fraudulent reports to the comptroller of the currency. The case lasted less than six hours and the jury rendered a verdict of guilty in 21 minutes after retiring. Hon. H.C. Parsons, counsel for the defense at once filed a motion for a new trial. Hon. H.C. McCormick, council for DeLa Green also filed a motion for a new trial with Judge Buffington reserving his decision.[7] In December 1894, Judge Joseph Buffington of the United States District Court suspended the sentence in the case of John M. Bowman. Several petitions were presented to the court asking that sentence be suspended. One was signed by all jurors who rendered the verdict and another by all the witnesses who appeared against him, and a third by 37 of the 50 stockholders of the bank, and still another signed by 362 of the 743 registered voters in the town of Muncy. In the case of DeLa Green, a new trial was granted on the ground that there was not sufficient evidence to convict, which practically ended the case.[8]
On September 14, 1898, the jury in the DeLa Green case after being out five hours returned with a verdict of guilty on the three remaining counts of the original indictment. The case was tried in U.S. District Court before Judge Buffington.[9]
Official Bank Title
1: The First National Bank of Muncy, PA
Bank Note Types Issued
A total of $437,450 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1865 and 1892. This consisted of a total of 48,916 notes (48,916 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 - 1200 Original Series 4x5 1 - 3500 Original Series 3x10-20 1 - 1900 Series 1875 4x5 1 - 500 Series 1875 3x10-20 1 - 2067 1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 3062
Bank Presidents and Cashiers
Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1865 - 1892):
Presidents:
- Hon. Henry Johnson, 1865-1874 NOTE: a featured biography is available
- CPT John M. Bowman, 1875-1891
Cashiers:
Other Known Bank Note Signers
- No other known bank note signers for this bank
Bank Note History Links
Sources
- Muncy, PA, 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
- ↑ Lewisburg Chronicle, Lewisburg, PA, Fri., Feb. 3, 1865.
- ↑ Lewisburg Chronicle, Lewisburg, PA, Fri., Mar. 24, 1865.
- ↑ Daily Gazette and Bulletin, Williamsport, PA, Tue., Jan. 28, 1868.
- ↑ The Sentinel, Carlisle, PA, Tue., Jan. 12, 1892.
- ↑ The Pittsburgh Press, Pittsburgh, PA, Tue., Jan. 12, 1892.
- ↑ The Philadelphia Times, Philadelphia, PA, Sun., Sep. 9, 1894.
- ↑ The Tribune, Scranton, PA, Tue., Sep. 11, 1894.
- ↑ The Columbian, Bloomsburg, PA, Fri., Dec. 28, 1894.
- ↑ The Columbian, Bloomsburg, PA, Thu., Sep., 22, 1898.