First National Bank, Snow Hill, NC (Charter 10887)

Needed: a contemporary postcard or photo of the bank.

First National Bank, Snow Hill, NC (Chartered 1916 - Liquidated 1923)

Town History

Snow Hill is a town in Greene County, North Carolina. It is the county seat of Greene County and is part of the Greenville Metropolitan Area. Snow Hill hosts numerous tennis tournaments during the year. Snow Hill is home to the Green Ridge Racquet Club. Many junior players and adults travel to Snow Hill in order to play in the USTA (United States Tennis Association) Sanctioned tournaments.

There are several theories for the derivation of the town's name. One theory is that the town derived its name from the Contentnea Creek on whose banks Native Americans camped and called them "snowy white," which was translated into "snowy hills." It snows rarely, however, so the snowy white is more likely a reference to the white sands along the creek.

The population was 1,595 at the 2010 census. In 1910, the population was 450 growing to 700 by 1920.

Snow Hill had two National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and one of those banks issued National Bank Notes.

Bank History

Organized July 25, 1916
Chartered August 11, 1916
Liquidated December 27, 1923
Succeeded by Bank of Greene, Snow Hill

In June 1916, C.M. Mendenhall resigned as cashier of the Bank of Hookerton to take the position on cashier in the new First National Bank of Snow Hill. D.H. DeBrule, assistant cashier of the Hookerton bank succeeded Mr. Mendenhall. On August 11, 1916, the comptroller of the currency issued a charter to The First National Bank with capital of $25,000.

In March 1918, A.C. Eskridge resigned his position as assistant cashier in the Bank of Thomasville to accet the place of cashier in the First National Bank of Snow Hill made vacant by the resignation of Moyer Mendenhall who entered the Army. In November 1918, men from North Carolina wounded in action in France during the last weeks of the fighting included Lieutenant Moyer Mendenhall, formerly of Snow Hill, reported to have been severely gassed.

In January 1919, the First National Bank of Snow Hill declared a semi-annual dividend of five per cent at the recent annual meeting of stockholders. J.C. Exum, W.B. Murphy, Charles R. Harper, C.M. Mendenhall, J. Paul Frizzelle, J.O. Sugg and L.H. Harrison were elected directors.

In August 1920, Evidence of the tremendous growth of a small town bank was found with the announcement that the directors of the First National Bank of Snow Hill decided to increase the capital stock to $100,000 and declare a 100 per cent, dividend on the original stock. The new stock had a par value of $100 a share, but was worth $150 at the outset. The bank had assets of $750,000 at the age of only four years. A few months ago it purchased an entire issue of $60,000 of Snow Hill improvement bonds.

The comptroller of the currency announced that the First National Bank of Snow Hill went into voluntary liquidation, effective December 27, 1923. The capital stock was stated as being $50,000. The liquidating agent was named as the Bank of Greene at Snow Hill and the institution was succeeded by the Bank of Greene.

Official Bank Title(s)

1: The First National Bank of Snow Hill, NC

Bank Note Types Issued

1902 Plain Back $20 bank note with printed signatures of Moyer Mendenhall, Cashier and Josiah C. Exum, President Courtesy of Heritage Auctions. www.ha.com

A total of $107,300 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1916 and 1923. This consisted of a total of 13,908 notes (13,908 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
1902 Plain Back	4x5	1 - 2000
1902 Plain Back	4x10	1 - 655
1902 Plain Back	3x10-20	1 - 822

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1916 - 1923):

Presidents:

Josiah Caull Exum Sr., 1916-1923

Cashiers:

Other Bank Note Signers

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

Wiki Links

Sources

Snow Hill, 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 Daily Free Press, Kinston, NC, Thu., June 15, 1916.
The Greensboro Patriot, Greensboro, NC, Mon., Aug. 14, 1916.
The News and Observer, Raleigh, NC, Tue., Mar. 5, 1918.
Virginian-Pilot and the Norfolk Landmark, Norfolk, VA, Sat., Nov. 16, 1918.
The Kinston Free Press, Kinston, NC, Wed., Jan. 29, 1919.
The Wilmington Morning Star, Wilmington, NC, Tue., Aug. 31, 1920.
The News and Observer, Raleigh, NC, Sat., Sep. 13, 1924.