First National Bank, Richmond, VA (Charter 1111)

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Postcard, ca1920s, of The First National Bank Building on the corner of Ninth and Main Streets, Richmond, Virginia. Erected in 1912, the building occupies the former site of the Chamber of Commerce Building which was torn down to make room for it. It was primarily designed for the joint use of the bank and the C. & O. Realty Company and the R.F. & P. Realty Company.
Postcard, ca1920s, of The First National Bank Building on the corner of Ninth and Main Streets, Richmond, Virginia. Erected in 1912, the building occupies the former site of the Chamber of Commerce Building which was torn down to make room for it.  It was primarily designed for the joint use of the bank and the C. & O. Realty Company and the R.F. & P. Realty Company. Courtesy of Adam Stroup

First National Bank, Richmond, VA (Chartered 1865 - Closed (Merger) 1983)

Town History

The old First National Bank building, now First National Apartments, ca2021.
The old First National Bank building, now First National Apartments, ca2021. Courtesy of Google Maps

Richmond is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Virginia. It was incorporated in 1742 and has been an independent city since 1871. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 204,214; in 2020, the population grew to 226,610, making Richmond the fourth-most populous city in Virginia. The Richmond Metropolitan Area has a population of 1,260,029, the third-most populous metro in the state.

Richmond is at the fall line of the James River, 44 miles west of Williamsburg, 66 miles east of Charlottesville, 91 miles east of Lynchburg and 92 miles south of Washington, D.C. Surrounded by Henrico and Chesterfield counties, the city is at the intersections of Interstate 95 and Interstate 64 and encircled by Interstate 295, Virginia State Route 150 and Virginia State Route 288. Major suburbs include Midlothian to the southwest, Chesterfield to the south, Varina to the southeast, Sandston to the east, Glen Allen to the north and west, Short Pump to the west and Mechanicsville to the northeast.

The site of Richmond had been an important village of the Powhatan Confederacy, and was briefly settled by English colonists from Jamestown from 1609 to 1611. The present city of Richmond was founded in 1737. It became the capital of the Colony and Dominion of Virginia in 1780, replacing Williamsburg. During the Revolutionary War period, several notable events occurred in the city, including Patrick Henry's "Give me liberty or give me death" speech in 1775 at St. John's Church, and the passage of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom written by Thomas Jefferson. During the American Civil War, Richmond was the capital of the Confederacy.

The Main Street Banking Historic District is a national historic district located in downtown Richmond, Virginia.

Richmond had 11 National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and all 11 of those banks issued National Bank Notes..

Bank History

First National Bank Building, located at 823 East Main Street in Richmond, Virginia, on Wikipedia.

1905 Advertisement for the First National Bank of Richmond with capital of $600,000 and Surplus of $400,000. John B. Purcell, president; John M. Miller, Jr., vice president and cashier; Charles R. Burnett, assistant cashier and J.C. Joplin, assistant cashier.
1905 Advertisement for the First National Bank of Richmond with capital of $600,000 and Surplus of $400,000. John B. Purcell, president; John M. Miller, Jr., vice president and cashier; Charles R. Burnett, assistant cashier and J.C. Joplin, assistant cashier.
  • Organized April 17, 1865
  • Chartered May 3, 1865
  • Assumed 1155 December 5, 1867 (National Exchange Bank, Richmond, VA)
  • Assumed 1125 by consolidation September 2, 1912 and its circulation (National Bank of Virginia, Richmond, VA)
  • Assumed 1754 by consolidation February 27, 1926 and its circulation with title change to The First and Merchants National Bank of (Merchants National Bank, Richmond, VA)
  • Bank was Open past 1935
  • For Bank History after 1935 see FDIC Bank History website
  • Merged into Sovran Bank, NA in Richmond, VA, December 31, 1983

First National Bank Building, located at 823 East Main Street in Richmond, Virginia, on Wikipedia.

Ad states When you bank at the First and Merchants, you are a customer of the largest bank in the Virginias and Carolinas, and obtain all the advantages and protection which size and strength denote. We welcome sound accounts. The bank and other buildings and square are shown.
Advertisement from the First and Merchants National Bank of Richmond with John M. Miller, Jr., President, and capital, surplus and undivided profits of $6.3 million.

The First National Bank of Richmond with Hamilton G. Fant, president, began operations on Wednesday, May 10, 1865, on the first floor of the Customs House with an entrance on Bank Street. The Customs House was one of the few buildings the remained standing after the evacuation and burning of Richmond. Six Richmond men were among the incorporators, but the initial $100,000 in stock was subscribed by 11 northern businessmen, since there was little money of value in the South. By July, the bank had loaned more than $100,000 to citizens of Richmond and also made an addition of $100,000 to its capital stock.

On January 9, 1866, the stockholders elected the following directors: Horace L. Kent, A.Y. Stokes, Samuel C. Tardy, Joseph R. Anderson, Franklin Stearns, H.G. Fant, Wellington Goddin, Philip Haxall, David J. Saunders, D. Von Groning, John E. White, John K. Childrey, William Taylor. S.A. Glover was Cashier. The bank reported $139,500 in circulating notes, $799,163.37 in individual deposits, and $156,000 in capital stock paid in.

With approval of over two-thirds of the stockholders of the National Exchange Bank of Richmond and the First National Bank of Richmond and with the assent of the Comptroller of the Currency, The National Exchange Bank was consolidated with the First National on December 9, 1867. The business of the new bank was conducted in the National Exchange Bank building under the name and charter of the First National Bank of Richmond. The following Officers and directors were elected: A. Vance Brown, president; S.B. Smith, cashier; S.A. Glover, assistant cashier; Franklin Stearns, Isaac Davenport, Jr., Samuel C. Tardy, John Purcell, A.Y. Stokes, A. Vance Brown, John E. White, M. Rosenbaum, D.J. Saunders, William Beers, H.G. Fant, William B. Jones, and Thomas E. Price, directors.

In January 1899, the officers were Virginius Newton, president; John B. Purcell, vice president; Henry C. Burnett, cashier. The directors were Virginius Newton, J.B. Purcell, F. Sitterding, T.M. Rutherford, J.A. Morris, I. Stern, J.B. Mosby, C. Davenport, D.O. Davis, and G.A. Davenport. The bank had capital of $600,000, surplus of $400,000, undivided profits of $89,223.78, deposits of $1,989,422.34 and circulation of $218,100.

In October 1910, the directors were T.M. Carrington, S.Dabney Crenshaw, A.H. Christian, Jr., Charles Davenport, D.O. davis, G.A. Davenport, John C. Easley, John M. Miller, Jr., John B. Purcell, T.M. Rutherford, E.A. Saunders, Jr., F. Sitterding, I. Stern, A.D. Williams, Henry W. Wood, Coleman, Worhtam, and J.B. Mosby. The officers were John B. Purcell, president; John M. Miller, Jr. vice president and cashier; Frederick E. Nolting, vice president, Chas. R. Burnett, J.C. Joplin, W.P. Shelton, and Alex F. Ryland, assistant cashiers. The bank had capital $1,000,000, earned surplus $1,000,000, and resources $9,600,000.

Stockholders met at the banking house at 1104 East Main Street on August 29th, 1912, to vote on the plan of consolidation with the National Bank of Virginia, of Richmond under the name of the First National Bank of Richmond. The National Bank of Virginia was led by W.M. Habliston, president and W.M. Addison, cashier, had capital of $1.2 million with 600,000 in surplus and was located on Ninth and Main Streets. Additionally the vote would allow capital to be increased from $1 million to $2 million with the issue of 10,000 additional shares at a par value of $100 each at the price of $150 per share. A favorable vote was received. At the end of November, 1912, the bank had resources of over $20.2 million.

The September 28, 1925 comptroller of the currency report showed that circulating national bank notes of the First National Bank, once as high as $2,288,200 in 1914 and just the year before at $697,400 was now at $0. No additional circulation occurred ending an impressive issuance of 204,969 sheets of $10 Plain Backs alone.

On Tuesday, January 26, 1926 a special meeting of stockholders was called the object being to consider and vote upon an agreement of consolidation entered into by the officers and directors fo the First National Bank and the Merchants' National Bank of Richmond, to be consolidated under the name of First and Merchant's National Bank of Richmond. Not all business could be accommodated on the appointed day and another special meeting was scheduled for February 24, 1926.

On March 1, 1926, the Comptroller of the Currency approved the consolidation of the two Richmond banks, the First National, having capital of $2 million, and the Merchants National with capital of $1 million. They consolidated under the charter of the First National Bank and planned to conduct business under the name of the First and Merchants National Bank of Richmond with capital stock of $3 million. At the end of 1926, the bank had resources of over $52 million.

In January 1960, First and Merchants National Bank reported record net operating earning of $2,032,693 for 1959 compared with $1,695,756 in 1958. Robert T. Marsh, Jr., president, reported net income before dividends of $1,919,568, or $6.40 a share on 300,000 shares, compared with $1,623,037, or $6.01 a share on 270,000 shares the preceding year. At the meeting stockholders elected E. Angus Powell, president of David M. Lea & Co., furniture and box manufacturers, as a member of the board of directors. At a subsequent meeting, George D. Brooke was elected an honorary director. Brooke recently retired as board chairman of the Virginian Railway which had merged with the Norfolk & Western. The Richmond News Leader, Richmond, VA, Tue., Jan. 16, 1960.

  • First National Bank of Ashland (merged on December 31, 1959)
  • Petersburg Savings & American Trust Co. (successor to Petersburg Savings and Insurance Co., one of the few banks in the South to survive the Civil War) (1962)
  • Augusta National Bank of Staunton (1962)
  • First National Bank of Newport News (1962)
  • Peoples National Bank & Trust Co. of Lynchburg (prior to 1966)
  • First National Bank of Waynesboro (prior to 1966)
  • July 31, 1970 Acquired Suburban National Bank of Virginia in Fairfax County
  • Dec. 31, 1977 Acquired Mountain Trust Bank in Roanoke, VA
  • Sep. 30, 1978 Acquired First & Merchants National Bank of the Peninsula in York County, VA
  • Sep. 30, 1978 Acquired First & Merchants National Bank of Prince William in Prince William County, VA
  • June 30, 1979 Acquired The First National Bank of Danville, in Danville, VA
  • Dec. 1, 1979 Acquired the Services National Bank in Arlington County, VA
  • July 1, 1981 Acquired The National Bank of Fairfax in Fairfax County, VA
  • Dec. 31, 1983 Merged and became part of Sovran Bank, National Association in Richmond, VA

Official Bank Title(s)

1: The First National Bank of Richmond, VA

2: The First and Merchants National Bank of Richmond, VA

Bank Note Types Issued

1882 Brown Back $5 bank note with pen signatures of H. Bennett, Cashier and Virginius Newton, President.
1882 Brown Back $5 bank note with pen signatures of H. Bennett, Cashier and Virginius Newton, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com
1902 Red Seal $5 bank note with printed signatures of John M. Miller, Jr., Cashier and John B. Purcell, President.
1902 Red Seal $5 bank note with printed signatures of John M. Miller, Jr., Cashier and John B. Purcell, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com
1902 Plain Back $10 bank note with printed signatures of James Ball, Jr., Cashier and John M. Miller, Jr., President.
1902 Plain Back $10 bank note with printed signatures of James Ball, Jr., Cashier and John M. Miller, Jr., President. Courtesy of Marshall Mallory

A total of $19,019,080 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1865 and 1983. This consisted of a total of 2,391,500 notes (2,391,500 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 4x5 1 - 12825
Original Series 3x10-20 1 - 9130
Original Series 3x50-100 1 - 720
Series 1875 3x10-20 1 - 14182
Series 1875 3x50-100 1 - 40
1882 Brown Back 4x5 1 - 11500
1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 31800
1902 Red Seal 4x5 1 - 30750
1902 Red Seal 4x10 1 - 16250
1902 Red Seal 3x10-20 1 - 10500
1902 Date Back 4x5 1 - 116500
1902 Date Back 4x10 1 - 113500
1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 16468
1902 Plain Back 4x5 116501 - 238741
1902 Plain Back 4x10 113501 - 204969

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1865 - 1983):

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

  • Richmond, VA, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richmond,_Virginia
  • 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
  • Alexandria Gazette, Alexandria, VA, Sat., May 13, 1865.
  • Alexandria Gazette, Alexandria, VA, Sat., July 29, 1865.
  • Richmond Dispatch, Richmond, VA, Fri., Jan. 5, 1866.
  • Richmond Dispatch, Richmond, VA, Fri., Jan. 12, 1866.
  • Richmond Dispatch, Richmond, VA, Sat., Dec. 7, 1867.
  • Richmond Dispatch, Richmond, VA, Sun., Jan. 1, 1899.
  • Richmond Times-Dispatch, Richmond, VA, Mon., Oct. 3, 1910.
  • The Times Dispatch, Richmond, VA, Mon., Jan. 8, 1912.
  • The Times Dispatch, Richmond, VA, Wed., Dec. 4, 1912.
  • The Times Dispatch, Richmond, VA, Thu., Jan. 14, 1926.
  • The Times Dispatch, Richmond, VA, Wed., Jan. 27, 1926.
  • The Times Dispatch, Richmond, VA, Tue., Mar. 2, 1926.
  • The Times Dispatch, Richmond, VA, Wed., Jan. 27, 1926.
  • The Richmond News Leader, Richmond, VA, Tue., Jan. 11., 1927.
  • The Richmond News Leader, Richmond, VA, Thu., Aug. 11., 1927.
  • The Daily News Leader, Staunton, VA, Wed., Nov. 18, 1959.
  • Richmond Times-Dispatch, Richmond, VA, Wed., July 19, 1961.
  • Richmond Times-Dispatch, Richmond, VA, Mon., Jan. 4, 1965.
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