German American NB/American NB, Aurora, IL (Charter 4469)

The American National Bank of Aurora, Illinois, ca1924. The building was designed by Lawrence A. Fournier of the Bankers Architectural & Engineering Company of Chicago.

German American NB/American NB, Aurora, IL (Chartered 1890 - Closed 1929)

Town History

Bank entrance flanked by terra cotta forms illustrating in allegorical form the dominating influence of integrity in the business world, life, industry, art and beauty.

Aurora is a city in the Chicago metropolitan area located partially in DuPage, Kane, Kendall, and Will counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. Located primarily in DuPage and Kane counties, it is the second most populous city in Illinois, after Chicago, and the 144th most populous city in the United States. The population was 197,899 at the 2010 census, and was 180,542 as of the 2020 Census.

Founded within Kane County, Aurora's city limits have expanded into DuPage, Will, and Kendall counties. Once a mid-sized manufacturing city, Aurora has grown since the 1960s. From 2000 to 2009, the U.S. Census Bureau ranked the city as the 46th fastest growing city with a population of over 100,000.

In 1908, Aurora adopted the nickname "City of Lights", because in 1881 it was one of the first cities in the United States to implement an all-electric street lighting system. Aurora's historic downtown is located on the Fox River, and centered on Stolp Island.

Aurora began as two villages: East Aurora, incorporated in 1845 on the east side of the river, and West Aurora, formally organized on the west side of the river in 1854. In 1857, the two towns joined, incorporating as the city of Aurora. Representatives could not agree which side of the river should house the public buildings, so most of them were built on or around Stolp Island in the middle of the river.

Aurora had nine National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and eight of those banks issued National Bank Notes.

Bank History

A nook in the interior of the American National Bank showing a mural and an open pool of water and statuette. Water flows down narrow terra cotta steps on either side of a pedestal which is surmounted by the figure of a girl kneeling. Above the pool and statuette is a mural painting depicting the first coming of the white man to the present site of Aurora on the Fox River.

The old American National Bank, located on the corner of Broadway and Galena Boulevard, Aurora, Illinois, ca2022. Courtesy of Google Maps

Organized October 1, 1890
Chartered November 15, 1890
2: Closed December 31, 1929
2: Consolidated with 38 on December 31, 1929 (First National Bank of, Aurora, IL)
2: Circulation assumed by 38 (First National Bank of, Aurora, IL)

On November 15, 1890, the German American National Bank of Aurora, Illinois, was authorized to begin business with capital of $100,000. The bank was organized by H.H. Evans, John Plain, M.E. Plain, E.W. Trask, J.O. Mason, Nic. Hermes, and Peter Klein, and began business on the 1st of December, 1890. On that date the institution received deposits of $150,000. Its first officers were as follows: H.H. Evans, president; John Plain, vice president; and J.H. Plain, cashier.

On Thursday, June 30, 1904, money by the bagful, plies of gold and silver, coin, stacks of greenbacks, and bundles of securities heaped on the counters of the German-American National Bank of Aurora by loyal citizens checked a remarkable "run" on the institution. The demonstration on the part of the local merchants and wealthy depositors in favor of the bank which had been shaken by the embezzlement of more than $90,000 by its cashier, "Honest Jacob" Plain alone saved the bank from ruin. While hundreds of crazed depositors fought to withdraw their funds in expectancy of a crash, their neighbors, equally determined, elbowed their way to the long counters and laid their resources at the disposal of the directors. For hours in the morning the interior of the bank was a maelstrom of creditors, half of them eager to draw out their money and half as zealous to cast their wealth in. At noon nearly $40,000 had been withdrawn, the stacks of greenbacks and coin were diminishing and the directors' faces wore an anxious expression. At night the tide had turned the other way and money flowed back faster than it had ebbed out, and the bank was saved. Michael E. Plain, acting cashier in place of his defaulting brother, announced when the bank finally closed its doors at the end of the day that the institution had weathered the storm successfully.

Preparations were made for an assault on the bank's cash. A hasty meeting of the directors of the other five Aurora banks was called the preceding afternoon and $50,000 was turned over to the German American National for the emergency. The directors of the threatened institution had realized another $25,000 on their own private securities. Added to this was $50,000 received by express from Chicago on an early morning train. In spite of all the precautions for a "run,” the officers were scarcely looking for the demonstration which developed. At 8 o'clock, an hour before the bank was to open, a crowd of 200 stood in line ready to draw out their money. In the crowd were farmers and workingmen, terrified over the thought of losing their small accumulations, and women with babies in their arms, all struggling for a position in the front of the line. Senator H.H. Evans, J.O. Mason, E.W. Trask, and M.E. Plain surveyed the situation with alarm. "Let's open the doors at once and do our best," was finally the decision to which they came. And from half past 8 in the morning until half past 4 o'clock in the afternoon the paying tellers, aided by the bank's directors in their shirt sleeves, stood behind the counters ready to pay out every cent that was demanded. For a time, the situation was ominous. The money flowed out fast, and the crowd of frenzied depositors continued to throng the banking rooms. At noon the bank was still solid, but the surplus was being rapidly drained. In the afternoon the change came. Fred Fauth made the first big deposit. He was followed by E.W. Trask, Charles Battle, James McCrede, and others. Soon the bank was filled with merchants who offered their wealth to stem the "run." In the midst of the excitement an Adams Express company wagon drove up to the bank and unloaded $50,000 in cash. This effectually turned the scales. The small depositors, reassured, took their money back, and the crowd about the bank doors faded away. At night Director Mason declared the bank had opened more new accounts than during any previous day in its history. Mr. Plain estimated the amount of deposits withdrawn during the day at $55,000. Of this amount, $45,000 went back into the bank's coffers again before nightfall. Fifty thousand dollars was sent from the National Bank of the Republic, where the German-American National had $75,000 on deposit. Other sources realized a surplus of nearly $200,000. Of this surplus $175,000 remained.

During the run the author of the disturbance, "Honest Jacob" Plain was pacing the garden at the home of his aged father, John Plain, holding himself aloof from the sight of his neighbors, and submitting himself to the self-torture of remorse. His hand trembled, and there were tears in his eyes as he talked of his downfall. "Do you see that old man standing on the porch?" he said, pointing to his father. "That's why I am sure I can never face the world again. He trusted me, and I deceived him. I’m not fit to be his son.” “My plans?” he continued, “a few years in the penitentiary and then I'll start again, and no more speculation for me."

On November 11, 1904, Jacob H. Plain, ex-cashier of the German American National Bank pleaded guilty to the charge of embezzlement of $40,000 of the bank's funds. He was sentenced to five years in the penitentiary.

In 1923, the men who had figured most prominently in the building up and expansion of the business of the American National Bank of Aurora were John Plain, M.E. Plain and Peter Klein, who served successively as president of the institution and who had the able assistance of the directors. The new building, located at No. 1 South Broadway in Aurora, was finished in September 1923. The effect of this structure was immediate according to bank officers. After completion deposits grew rapidly. On December 31, 1923, the bank's deposits were $2,581,394, an increase for the year of $454,327. The institution was expanding its business in all departments and had recently organized a trust department.

In October 1929, consolidation of the American National Bank and the First National Bank of Aurora into one banking organization known as the First National Bank with combined deposits in excess of $6,000,000 was effected. Verne C. Bonesteel, former Sioux City, Iowa banker was promoted to the post of president of the First National Bank of Aurora, Illinois, formed by the merger of two big banking firms there. Mr. Bonesteel left Sioux City about two years ago to become president of the American National Bank of Aurora. He served as vice president of the Security National Bank of Sioux City and was active in affairs of the Kiwanis club, musical organizations and other civic bodies.

Official Bank Title(s)

1: The German American National Bank of Aurora, IL

2: The American National Bank of (6/10/1918), Aurora, IL

Bank Note Types Issued

1882 Brown Back $20 bank note with pen signatures of G.A. Fauth, Cashier and John Plain, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

1902 Date Back $10 bank note with pen signatures of G.A. Fauth, Cashier and M.E. Plain, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

1902 Plain Back $10 bank note with printed signatures of J.C. Weiland, Cashier and Peter Klein, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

1929 Type 1 $10 bank note with printed signatures of J.C. Weiland, Cashier and V.C. Bonesteel, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

A total of $1,485,930 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1890 and 1929. This consisted of a total of 119,166 notes (116,268 large size and 2,898 small size notes).

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

Series/Type	Sheet/Denoms	Serial#s	Sheet Comments
1: 1882 Brown Back	3x10-20	1 - 8240
1: 1882 Date Back	3x10-20	1 - 1250
1: 1902 Date Back	3x10-20	1 - 5400
1: 1902 Plain Back	3x10-20	5401 - 7200
2: 1902 Plain Back	3x10-20	1 - 12377
2: 1929 Type 1	6x10	1 - 423
2: 1929 Type 1	6x20	1 - 60

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1890 - 1929):

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

Aurora, IL, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurora,_Illinois
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
Francis Murray Huston, Financing an Empire: History of Banking in Illinois (4 volumes) (Chicago: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1926), Vol. 2, p. 295.
The Bankers' Magazine, Vol. 108, Jan. 1924 - June 1924, pp 848-849.
Sterling Daily Gazette, Sterling, IL, Mon., Nov. 17, 1890.
The Inter Ocean, Chicago, IL, Fri., July 1, 1904.
The Rock Island Argus, Rock Island, IL, Fri., Nov. 11, 1904.
Sioux City Journal, Sioux City, IA, Tue., Oct. 15, 1929.