Iowa Bank Note History
The Iowa Bank Note History home page consolidates historical information on the National/Obsolete Banks, Bankers and Banking History of Iowa. It also highlights What's New, along with National Bank Stats & Graphs, Famous Banks & Bankers, and helpful Research Resources.
Iowa County home pages
County Bank Note History home pages provide information on the Banks, Bankers and Bank Notes for that county during the National Bank Note Era (1863-1935), and also the Obsolete Bank Note Era (1782-1866) (if applicable for that county). All of the county's National & Obsolete Banks are listed with links to their Bank History pages. Prominent Bankers are also listed with links to their Banker Bio pages. Several Bank Notes are featured, as well as bank postcards and other bank related ephemera.
If you have a local County Historical Society/Museum, they may be interested in adding a link on their website to their County's Bank Note History home page in our wiki.
What's New in Iowa Bank Note History
- Bank Histories:
- First National Bank, Webster City, IA (Charter 1874) (1871-1932)
- First National Bank, Thompson, IA (Charter 5054) (1896-1932)
- First National Bank, Dunkerton, IA (Charter 6722) (1903-1933)
- First National Bank, Clarence, IA (Charter 7682) (1905-1931)
- First National Bank, Titonka, IA (Charter 5597) (1900-1930)
- First National Bank, Klemme, IA (Charter 6659) (1903-1974)
- Union National Bank, Ames, IA (Charter 3017) (1883-1932)
- Boone National Bank, Boone, IA (Charter 6838) (1903-1925)
- Banker Bios:
Iowa Bank Histories Index
The Bank Histories are organized alphabetically by Town, then by Bank Open Date. To find the Iowa Bank you are looking for, select from the following Index list. You can also search the entire wiki for the Bank's town name or charter number using the Search Box in the upper right corner.
Iowa Banker Biographies Index
The Banker Bios are organized alphabetically by Last Name. To find the Iowa Banker you are looking for, select from the following Index list. For an Index list of all Banker Bios for all States, use the Banker Biographies sidebar link. You can also search the entire wiki for the Banker's last name using the Search Box in the upper right corner.
Iowa National Bank Stats, Lists & Graphs
The label for each of these Stats is a link to the corresponding pdf list of banks
- # Issuing Banks: 496
- # Non-Issuing Banks: 46
- # Large Size Issuers: 474
- # Small Size Issuers: 249
- # Territorial Banks: 0
- NBN Geo. Letter: M
- State Capital: Des Moines
- Statehood Date: December 28, 1846
- Iowa National Bank Graphs & Lists
- # of National Banks Chartered By Year
- # of National Bank Failures (Receivership) By Year
- # of National Bank Closures (Receivership/Liquidation/Closed) By Year
- # of National Banks In Operation By Year
- List of 40 National Banks with Lowest # of Notes Issued
- List of Iowa National Banks (Issued Notes) Sorted by Town by Charter#
Famous Iowa Banks & Bankers
- First national bank to open for business
- One of the eight Midwestern "jewel-box" banks designed by Louis Sullivan, legendary American architect and mentor of Frank Lloyd Wright.
- Toy, James F. (Sioux City, IA)
Iowa Counties Index
This index lists Iowa counties that had towns with National or Obsolete Banks (1782-1935).
Iowa Towns Index
This index lists Iowa towns that had National or Obsolete Banks (1782-1935).
Iowa Obsolete to National Bank Conversions
Iowa Banking History
Wiki Links
- Iowa Index page
- Information on the origin and history of National Bank Notes (Wikipedia)
- General information on Iowa (Wikipedia)
Iowa Research Resources
- James C. Ehrhardt & Steven J. Sweeney, Iowa National Bank Notes (Okoboji, IA: Higgins Foundation, 2006).
- Dean Oakes, Iowa Obsolete Notes & Scrip. A Revision of the Original 1982 Book (Okoboji, IA: Dean Oakes, 2015).
- The Higgins Museum in Okoboji, IA has a Currency Related Research Library, as well as major collections of Iowa, Minnesota, South Dakota and Nebraska National Bank Notes on display.
- 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).
- The National Bank Note Census, nbncensus.com
- OCC Annual Reports 1863 – 1935 (U.S. Treasury Dept: Office of the Comptroller of the Currency).
- (The OCC Annual Reports are available online at the Currency Club of Chester County (PA) website).
- The Bankers Magazine 1846 – 1922 (New York: various publishers over the years).
- (The Bankers Magazine volumes are available online at the Currency Club of Chester County (PA) website).
- Rand McNally Banker's Directories 1879 – 1935 (Chicago: Rand McNally & Company).
- Polk's Banker's Encyclopedias 1895 – 1935 (Detroit and New York: Polk Bankers Encyclopedia Co.).
- James A. Haxby, United States Obsolete Bank Notes 1782-1866 (4 volumes) (Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 1988).
- Paper Money Journal, 1962-present (Published by the Society of Paper Money Collectors, spmc.org). Many articles over the years about the history of National & Obsolete Banks and Bankers. An archive of all back issues with search capabilities is online for SPMC members at spmc.org.
- Iowa State Legislators - Past & Present (with many photos), https://www.legis.iowa.gov/legislators/informationOnLegislators/historicalInformation
- The Political Graveyard: Politicians in Banking and Finance in Iowa, https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/IA/banking.html
- FDIC, Bank Find History website. https://research2.fdic.gov/bankfind/index.html
- Iowa County Historical Societies (?)
- Any other on-line research links? (ancestry.com, findagrave.com, newspapers.com)