First National Bank, Rochester, PA (Charter 2977)
First National Bank, Rochester, PA (Chartered 1883 - Open past 1935)
Town History
Rochester is a borough in central Beaver County, Pennsylvania, at the confluence of the Beaver and Ohio rivers. Located 25 miles northwest of Pittsburgh, it is part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. Like many places around Pittsburgh, Rochester was a former industrial hub, home to the H.C. Fry Glass Company, and was a major junction on the Pennsylvania Railroad.
The area was settled in 1799 in what was then the American frontier and was known as East Bridgewater, Fairport, and Beaver Point. The borough adopted the name Rochester in 1834 when a local businessman who did regular business in Pittsburgh decided to christen his home with the name Rochester so he could have a unique name to stamp his goods. The borough was officially incorporated as such in 1849.
Rochester is where Henry Clay Fry and his associates formed a glass manufacturing company following Fry's return from the American Civil War. In 1897 the Rochester Tumbler Company (as the company was known) became the National Glass Company of Rochester. The company helped to introduce pressed glass production to America, pressing the glass into a mold where previously the technique of cut glass had been to blow it by hand. At its height, the National Glass Company of Rochester employed over a 1000 people, but its bankruptcy during the Great Depression began a long decline in the town's population. The population was 3,480 at the 2020 census. The population in 1900 was 4,688, peaking in 1930 at 7,726.
Rochester had three National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and all three of those banks issued National Bank Notes.
Bank History
- Organized May 26, 1883
- Chartered June 14, 1883
- Absorbed 7749 February 18, 1935 (Peoples National Bank, Rochester, PA)
- Bank was Open past 1935
On June 14, 1883, the comptroller of the currency authorized the First National Bank of Rochester to begin business with capital of $50,000.
On Wednesday, January 16, 1890, stockholders elected the following directors: H.C. Fry, Sr., I.F. Mansfield, Jesse H. Lippincott, John J. Hoffman, John M. Buchanan, A.C. Hurst, and W. Shallenberger.
In September 1892, at a meeting of the stockholders and directors, W.S. Shallenberger resigned the position of cashier to accept the position of treasurer of the Rochester Tumbler Company at their office in Pittsburgh. C.J. Wack was elected cashier and Mr. Shallenberger was made a vice president. He was remembered as an excellent representative from the 24th district.
On August 3, 1894, Charles J. Wack, cashier, died having been sick but five hours with cholera. He was always courteous and obliging and a man who honored the position and whom the position did not spoil. The needy and unfortunate could always find a helper in Charley Wack. He was married about two years earlier to Clara Blazier of Baden.
In October 1904, the officers were Henry C. Fry, president; I.F. Mansfield, vice president; and John H. Mellor, cashier. The bank was located on the corner of New York and Brighton Streets. The capital was $150,000 with surplus and profits $40,000.
On January 3, 1929, Henry C. Fry, aged 88, pioneer glass manufacturer died at his home in Rochester. He was president of the H.C. Fry Glass Company which manufactured products sold throughout the world. For Many years Fry was connected with glass manufacturing concerns in Pittsburgh, among which were the William Phillips Glass Co., Lippincott-Fry Glass Co., J.B. Lyon and Co. In 1872 he organized the Rochester Tumbler Co. and later the National Glass Co., operating nineteen plants. In 1901 he formed the H.C. Fry Glass Co. and the First National Bank of Rochester. He was born in Lexington, Kentucky, September 17, 1840 and came to Pennsylvania in 1857. He served with the 15th Pennsylvania Cavalry during the civil war.
On December 31, 1934, the First National and the Peoples National Banks of Rochester consolidated. The merger was approved by the state and Federal banking departments. The new bank took the title of First National Bank of Rochester with capital of $150,000, surplus and profits $46,000, total deposits $1,200,000, and total assets of $1,626,000.
In December 1953, stockholders of the Beaver Trust Co. and the First National Bank of Rochester unanimously approved a plan for merging the two financial institutions at special meetings. Subject to approval by the comptroller of the currency and state banking department, the merger was expect to take place on or before January 1st. The directors approved the plan on October 22d. Complete banking facilities would be available at the Rochester office and at Beaver with no change in the officers and employees who had served them in the past.
The Beaver Trust Co. was the largest bank in Beaver County with total resources at the close of 1953 of $22,375,696. It began to acquire branches in 1952 when it merged with the Midland Bank. This was followed by an exchange of shares with the Rochester Deposit Bank in October 1953 and another exchange of stock with the First National Bank of Rochester in December 1953. The acquisition of the First National on a share-for-share basis increased the capital to $800,000 with surplus of $800,000 and undivided profits $217,202. Deposits of the bank at the end of the year were $12,995,603 demand and $7,346,028 time.
Official Bank Title(s)
1: The First National Bank of Rochester, PA
Bank Note Types Issued
A total of $2,883,760 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1883 and 1935. This consisted of a total of 242,131 notes (201,708 large size and 40,423 small size notes).
This bank issued the following Types and Denominations of bank notes:
Series/Type Sheet/Denoms Serial#s Sheet Comments 1882 Brown Back 4x5 1 - 4414 1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 951 1902 Red Seal 3x10-20 1 - 2340 1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 14000 1902 Plain Back 3x10-20 14001 - 42722 1929 Type 1 6x10 1 - 4590 1929 Type 1 6x20 1 - 1260 1929 Type 2 10 1 - 3823 1929 Type 2 20 1 - 1500
Bank Presidents and Cashiers
Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1883 - 1936):
Presidents:
Cashiers:
- William Shadrach Shallenberger, 1883-1891
- Charles J. Wack, 1892-1893
- Thomas C. Fry, 1894-1899
- John H. Mellor, 1900-1935
Other Bank Note Signers
- Ira Franklin Mansfield, Vice President 1904...1908
- There are currently no known Assistant Cashier bank note signers for this bank.
Wiki Links
- Pennsylvania Bank Note History
- General information on Rochester (Wikipedia)
- General information on Beaver County (Wikipedia)
- General information on Pennsylvania (Wikipedia)
Sources
- Rochester, 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
- Harrisburg, Telegraph, Harrisburg, PA, Thu., June 14, 1883.
- Pittsburgh Daily Post, Pittsburgh, PA, Thu., Jan. 16, 1890.
- The Daily Republican, Monongahela, PA, Sat., Sep. 24, 1892.
- The Pittsburgh Press, Pittsburgh, PA, Sun., Aug. 5, 1894.
- The Pittsburgh Press, Pittsburgh, PA, Sat., Oct. 15, 1904.
- Altoona Mirror, Altoona, PA, Thu., Jan. 3, 1929.
- Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Pittsburgh, PA, Tue, Jan. 1, 1935.
- The Oil City Derrick, Oil City, PA, Sat., Dec. 5, 1953.
- Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Pittsburgh, PA, Thu., Feb. 11, 1954.