First National Bank, West Greenville/Greenville, PA (Charter 249)

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The First National Bank of Greenville, Pennsylvania. Construction began in 1922 and opening day was April 3, 1923. Courtesy of Google Maps, ca2023

First National Bank, West Greenville/Greenville, PA (Chartered 1864 - Open past 1935)

Town History

An 1877 advertisement for the First National Bank of West Greenville. The bank was located on the corner of Main and Canal Streets, Greenville.[1]

Greenville is a borough with home rule status in northwestern Mercer County, Pennsylvania. Located along the Shenango River, it lies roughly 80 miles from both Pittsburgh and Cleveland. It had a population of 5,541 as of the 2020 census. In 1870 the population was 1,848, peaking at 9,210 in 1950.

Incorporated as the Borough of West Greenville in 1836, Alexander V. Waugh was appointed the post master.[2] The name was changed to the Borough of Greenville in 1865 and it began to operate under a home rule charter on January 1, 2020, under the name of the "Town of Greenville." The origin of the name is speculated to have come from East Greenville, Pennsylvania. Greenville is part of the Hermitage micropolitan area. It was home to the Werner Company, the world's largest manufacturer of step and extension ladders. Bail USA, a national bail bond company, and Anderson Coach & Travel, a prominent regional bus company, are based in Greenville.

West Greenville/Greenville had two National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, the First National Bank (Charter 249) and the Greenville National Bank (Charter 2251), and they both issued National Bank Notes.

Bank History

A 1930 advertisement for the First National Bank of Greenville.[3]
  • Chartered February 12, 1864
  • Bank was Open past 1935
  • For Bank History after 1935 see FDIC Bank History website
  • Merged with Greenville National Bank (Charter 2251) in 1946
  • Changed name to First National Bank of Pennsylvania on July 24, 1992.
  • Still in business as First National Bank of Pennsylvania (October 2024)

In March 1864, the Comptroller of the Currency authorized the organizing of the First National Bank of West Greenville, Pennsylvania, with the following directors and officers: Samuel P. Johnston, Wm. Achre, Samuel Goodwin, D.B. Packard, David Loutzenhiser, Henry F. Hartman, John McMichael, Marvin Loomis, and William Waugh. The officers were Samuel P. Johnston, president; and Wm. Waugh, cashier. The bank planned to commence business on April 4th.[4]

In July 1876, the directors were Samuel Goodwin, William Achre, Harry Watson, Marvin Loomis, John R. Packard, Benjamin Henlein, and Wm. Waugh. The officers were Wm. Waugh, president; and C.R. Beatty, cashier. The capital was $125,000, surplus and undivided profits $46,437.[5]

On May 28, 1883, in pursuance of an Act of Congress of February 26, 1883, and with the consent of the Comptroller of the Currency, the directors of the First National Bank of West Greenville have changed the name and title of their bank to the First National Bank of Greenville, by dropping the "West."[6]

In January 1896, the directors were G.G. Stage, president; R.C. McMaster, vice president; J.J. Hutcheson, J.A. Nisbet, E.P. Gillespie, W.W. Ray, Greenville; and R.S. Johnston, Chicago.[7]

In January 1915, the directors were J.S. Matson, W.W. Ray, G.G. Stage, Hon. R.C. McMaster, W.C. Pettit, G.S. Stage, and N.E. Tillotson. The officers were G.G. Stage, president; R.C. McMaster, vice president; and C.E. Witmer, cashier.[8]

In June 1917, the officers were W.C. Pettit, president; N.E. Tillotson, vice president; C.E. Witmer, cashier; L.A. Davis, assistant cashier; E.M. Rowley, teller; and Etta Callen and Miles L. Hittle, bookkeepers.[9]

In January 1920, the directors were J.R. Andrews, F.A. Keck, J.S. Matson, F.W. Moser, W.C. Pettit, W.H. Phillips, and N.E. Tillotson. The officers were W.C. Pettit, president; N.E. Tillotson, vice president; L.A. Davis, cashier and M.L. Hittle, assistant cashier.[10] Mr. Tillotson was president of the Board of Trade Building and Loan Association.[11]

In January 1922, the directors were J.R. Andrews, J.S. Matson, F.W. Moser, F.A. Keck, W.H. Phillips, W.C. Pettit, and N.E. Tillotson.  The officers were W.C. Pettit, president; N.E. Tillotson and R.A. Horne, vice presidents; L.A. Davis, cashier; M.L. Hittle, assistant cashier; B.L. Collins, teller; V.L. Hittle and Esther Marks, bookkeepers.[12] In February, Peter Hassell, purchaser of the frame business property at the corner of Pine and broad Streets, began its razing to make room for the erection of the new building for the First national Bank. The building was occupied by the Bobbitt grocery on the first floor and the barber shop of John Hanna on the second. Contractors would begin work on the bank once the buildings were removed from the lot.[13] At the bank it was said the contractor would start work of demolition at the rear of the present bank building up to the part occupied by the bank and then start the work of putting in the concrete base for the walls and new vault. The Shenango Tire and rubber Company whose officed had been located in the building ever since its organization would move to its new offices at the rubber plant on North High Street.[14] 

On July 1, 1922, the First National Bank and the Greenville National Bank were advised that an Act was passed by Congress providing that all national bank associations in existence on that date would have succession until 99 years from July 1, 1922 unless such association should be sooner dissolved by shareholders owning two-thirds of its stock, or unless its franchise should become forfeited by reason of violation of law, or unless it should be terminated by an act of Congress hereafter enacted. No action was necessary on the part of the bank in connection with this extension of corporate existence and it was not necessary that any new plates be prepared for circulation.[15]

On Tuesday, April 3, 1923, the opening day of the new banking house, a steady procession of people moved through the aisles and visited the banking rooms of the First National Bank. The reception hours were from two to five in the afternoon and from seven to ten in the evening.[16]

In May 1926, W.S. McKay, president of the First National Bank of Greenville, formerly cashier of the Oil City National Bank, was one of the speakers at the 32d annual convention of the Pennsylvania Bankers' Association held at Atlantic City, New Jersey.[17]

In January 1930, the directors were J.R. Andrews, F.A. Keck, F.W. Moser, W.S. McKay, and W.H. Phillips. The officers were W.S. McKay, president; F.A. Keck, vice president; F.D. Stout, cashier; M.L. Hittle and B.L Collins, assistant cashiers. The bank opened a trust department and was authorized to act in all fiduciary capacities.[18]

On Tuesday, July 16, 1946, the merger of the First national Bank and the Greenville National was announced. The combination would create one of the largest banking houses in Mercer County.[19] T. Ray Thorne, president of the Greenville National would become chairman of the board and Norman P. Mortensen, First National president, would be president and chief executive officer. The new bank would have total assets of $10,750,000 and capital, surplus and undivided profits of $720,000.[20]

In January 1955, all officers and directors were re-elected for the coming year. The directors re-elected were J.P. Dart, W.R. Davis, Frank C. Davis, Fred A. Keck, John R. Loutzenhiser, Norman P. Mortensen, Fred W. Moser, Dr. W.H. Phillips, Levi B. Taylor, T.R. Thorne, and Floyd E. Zuschlag. The officers re-elected were T.R. Thorne, chairman of the board; F.A. Keck, vice chairman of the board; Norman P. Mortensen, president and trust officer; Dr. William H. Phillips and B.L. Collins, vice presidents; John H. Frampton, cashier; D.E. Frew, Miles L. Hittle, Robert G. Love, Edward W. Arnold, and William F. Byers, Jr., assistant cashiers; and Eleanor L. Lininger, assistant trust officer. During 1954, the First national Bank increased its surplus to $500,000, adding $45,682 to reserves. The surplus now equaled the common stock of $500,000.[21] On Monday, July 25, 1955, the merger of the First National Bank of Greensville and the S.J. Gully Bank, Farrell, became effective. The name of the combined institution would be changed to The First National Bank of Mercer County, Greenville, with offices in Farrell, Greenville, and Jamestown. The acquisition brought the capital and reserves to $1,100,000 with plans to increase the amount to $1,400,000 in the near future. The combined resources exceeded $20 million. The banking business of the Gully Bank was founded 50 years ago. S.J. Gully and Guy W. Gully would continue their banking interest in Farrell and the surrounding area with membership on the board of directors of the First National and by serving as advisers and consultants to the enlarged bank. The bank was located at 821 Broadway, Farrell, one of the most modern banking buildings in Mercer County and the district. Personnel of the Farrell bank were retained including Paul Williams and Miss Eva Conte, assistant cashiers.[22]

On Sunday, June 1, 1969, T. Ray Thorne, 93, chairman of the board of the Greenville Record-Argus died after an extended illness. Thorne was a banker in Greenville for 71 years before retiring in 1968. He became president of the Greenville National Bank in 1927. When it merged with the First National Bank of Greenville in 1946, he became chairman of the board. Thorne took over as chairman of the newspaper's board in 1962 after the death of his sister, Mrs. John L. Morrison, the publisher.[23]

On Monday, October 5, 1970, a lone bandit held up the Reynolds-Transfer office of the First National Bank of Mercer County, and mode off with $16,000 in cash. Bank teller Mrs. Doris Schuver of Reynolds said the robber declared, "This is a stickup," and told her to fill a brown paper grocery bank with big bills or he would kill her. Teller Cathy Sarvis of Reynolds was told to do the same. The robber was dressed in dark blue with long dark blue coveralls and a ski mask with Swedish design. He kept his left hand in his pocket giving the impression he was armed with a gun. The man fled in a Volkswagen believed to be turquoise in color and bearing Ohio registration plates. An earlier holdup at the Reynolds-Transfer office netted a revolver-armed bandit $5,600 on June 3, 1968.[24]

In 2022, FNB completed mergers with Howard Bancorp, Inc. and UB Bancorp, strengthening its presence in the Mid-Atlantic and North Carolina.

  • 08/26/1955 Changed Institution Name to First National Bank of Mercer County, Greenville, PA.
  • 02/15/1963 Changed Institution Name to First National Bank of Mercer County.
  • 07/24/1992 Changed Institution Name to First National Bank of Pennsylvania.
  • 05/14/1996 Acquired Dollar Savings Bank (FDIC #27938) in New Castle, PA.
  • 03/16/2001 Acquired Reeves Bank (FDIC #19868) in Beaver Falls, PA.
  • 02/15/2002 Acquired Promistar Bank (FDIC #14501) in Johnstown, PA.
  • 11/08/2002 Acquired Metropolitan National Bank (FDIC #32298) in Youngstown, OH.
  • 12/31/2003 Acquired First National Trust Company (FDIC #35177) in Hermitage, PA.
  • 10/08/2004 Acquired The First National Bank of Slippery Rock (Charter 6483) (FDIC #7972) in Slippery Rock, PA.
  • 02/18/2005 Acquired NorthSide Bank (FDIC #14558) in Pittsburgh, PA.
  • 10/07/2005 Acquired The National Bank of North East (Charter 9149) (FDIC #7938) in North East, PA.
  • 05/26/2006 Acquired The Legacy Bank (FDIC #35204) in Harrisburg, PA.
  • 04/01/2008 Acquired Omega Bank (FDIC #7533) in Huntingdon, PA.
  • 08/15/2008 Acquired Iron and Glass Bank (FDIC #9891) in Pittsburgh, PA.
  • 01/01/2011 Acquired Community Bank & Trust Company (FDIC #14530) in Clarks Summit, PA.
  • 01/01/2012 Acquired Parkvale Savings Bank (FDIC #30237) in Monroeville, PA.
  • 04/06/2013 Acquired BankAnnapolis (FDIC #32740) in Annapolis, MD.
  • 10/12/2013 Acquired Park View Federal Savings Bank (FDIC #28235) in Solon, OH.
  • 02/15/2014 Acquired Baltimore County Savings Bank (FDIC #32341) in Nottingham, MD.
  • 09/19/2014 Acquired OBA Bank (FDIC #27889) in Germantown, MD.
  • 02/13/2016 Acquired Metro Bank (FDIC #26255) in Lemoyne, PA.
  • 03/11/2017 Acquired Yadkin Bank (FDIC #19861) in Statesville, NC.
  • 02/05/2022 Acquired Howard Bank (FDIC #57776) in Baltimore, MD.
  • 12/12/2022 Acquired Union Bank (FDIC #34934) in Greenville, NC.

Official Bank Titles

1: The First National Bank of West Greenville, PA

2: The First National Bank of Greenville, PA (5/28/1883)

Bank Note Types Issued

1902 Plain Back $10 bank note with pen signatures of M.L. Hittle, Assistant Cashier and William C. Pettit, President. Courtesy of Adam Stroup
1902 Plain Back $20 bank note with stamped signatures of L.A. Davis, Cashier and R.A. Horne, Vice President. Courtesy of the NBNCensus.com
1929 Type 2 $10 bank note with printed signatures of F.D. Stout, Cashier and W.S. McKay, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

A total of $2,991,360 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1864 and 1935. This consisted of a total of 279,990 notes (218,092 large size and 61,898 small size notes).

This bank issued the following Types and Denominations of bank notes:

Series/Type Sheet/Denoms Serial#s Sheet Comments
1: Original Series 3x1-2 1 - 3000
1: Original Series 4x5 1 - 5500
1: Original Series 3x10-20 1 - 1550
1: Series 1875 3x10-20 1 - 1658
2: 1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 6696
2: 1902 Red Seal 3x10-20 1 - 5400
2: 1902 Red Seal 50-100 1 - 400
2: 1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 9200
2: 1902 Date Back 50-100 1 - 300
2: 1902 Plain Back 3x10-20 9201 - 30369
2: 1929 Type 1 6x5 1 - 3988
2: 1929 Type 1 6x10 1 - 3544
2: 1929 Type 1 6x20 1 - 408
2: 1929 Type 2 5 1 - 9222
2: 1929 Type 2 10 1 - 5036

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1864 - 1935):

Presidents:

Cashiers:

Other Known Bank Note Signers

Bank Note History Links

Sources

  • West Greenville/Greenville, 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
  1. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Sat., Oct. 20, 1877.
  2. ↑ The Washington Union, Washington, DC, Mon., May 16, 1836.
  3. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Sat., Jan. 4, 1930.
  4. ↑ The Pittsburgh Commercial, Pittsburgh, PA, Fri., Mar. 4, 1864.
  5. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Sat., July 22, 1876.
  6. ↑ Shenango Valley News, Greenville, PA, Fri., June 1, 1883.
  7. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Thu., Jan. 16, 1896.
  8. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Sat., Jan. 16, 1915.
  9. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Tue., June 19, 1917.
  10. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Tue., Jan. 27, 1920.
  11. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Thu., Jan. 22, 1920.
  12. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Wed., Jan. 11, 1922.
  13. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Tue., Feb. 14, 1922.
  14. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Fri., Feb. 17, 1922.
  15. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Sat., July 22, 1922.
  16. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Thu., Apr. 5, 1923.
  17. ↑ The News-Herald, Franklin, PA, Mon., May 24, 1926.
  18. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Sat., Jan. 4, 1930.
  19. ↑ Daily Gazette and Bulletin, Williamsport, PA, Wed., July 17, 1946.
  20. ↑ Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Pittsburgh, PA, Wed., July 17, 1946.
  21. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Wed., Jan. 12, 1955.
  22. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Mon., July 25, 1955.
  23. ↑ The Oil City Derrick, Oil City, PA, Tue., June 3, 1969.
  24. ↑ The Record-Argus, Greenville, PA, Tue., Oct. 6, 1970.
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