Isbell National Bank, Talladega, AL (Charter 4838)
Isbell National Bank, Talladega, AL (Chartered 1893 - Open past 1935)
Town History
Talladega (/ˌtæləˈdɪɡə/, also /ˌtæləˈdeɪɡə/) is the county seat of Talladega County, Alabama. It was incorporated in 1835. Talladega is approximately 50 miles east of one of the state’s largest cities, Birmingham. At the 2020 census, the population was 15,861. In 1890, the population was 2,063, growing to 7,596 by 1930.
The city is home to the Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind and the Talladega Municipal Airport, a public general aviation airport. The Talladega Superspeedway, Talladega College and the International Motorsports Hall of Fame are located nearby. The First National Bank of Talladega (now First Bank of Alabama) is the oldest bank in the State of Alabama, being founded in 1848.[1]
The name Talladega is derived from a Muscogee language, a Native American language of the Muscogee. It comes from the word Tvlvtēke, from Muscogee tvlwv, meaning "town", and vtēke, meaning "border", indicating its location on the border between Muscogee and Natchez.
Talladega had three National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and all three of those banks issued National Bank Notes.
Bank History
- Organized January 2, 1893
- Chartered January 11, 1893
- Succeeded Isbell & Co.
- Bank was Open past 1935
- For Bank History after 1935 see FDIC Bank History website
- Changed Name to First Bank of Alabama June 15, 2015
- Still in business as First Bank of Alabama (May 2024)
In 1889, Talladega boasted of three banks, including the recently incorporated First National Bank, capital $50,000, with Mr. T.S. Plowman, president. The Citizens' Bank had Mr. W.H. Skaggs as president. The third and oldest banking house in Talladega was founded in 1848 by Major James Isbell. In 1861, Major Isbell closed his bank, paying all depositors in full and withdrew from business until after the war. He died in 1871 and his son, Capt. R.H. Isbell with W.P. Armstrong, Esq. of the City National Bank of Selma formed the firm of Isbell & Company. Capt. Isbell's handsome residence with its fine facade and beautiful grounds was one of the notable structures of Talladega. During the financial panic of 1873, Isbell & Co. stood firm, meeting promptly every demand upon them. Additionally, the Talladega Real Estate and Loan Association composed of a number of prominent citizens was doing much to cheerfully meet and assist those willing to locate in this growing city.[2]
On December 5, 1892, Isbell & Company filed an application to organize the Isbell National Bank of Talladega with the Comptroller of the Currency in Washington.[3] On January 11, 1893, the Isbell National Bank with capital of $50,000 was authorized to begin business.[4] Capt. W.P. Armstrong of the City National Bank of Selma was elected its president. Capt. Isbell died a few months earlier and Capt. Armstrong was selected as his successor. Dr. A.W. Jones, one of three men credited with saving General Forrest at Oklahoma, Mississippi, was elected one of the directors.[5] The directors were Capt. W.P. Armstrong, Selma; W.H. Boynton, Talladega; J.H. Hicks, Talladega; Dr. A.W. Jones, Selma; R.L. Ivey, Talladega. The officers were Capt. W.P. Armstrong, president; R.L. Ivey, cashier; W.H. Boynton, assistant cashier; F.P. McConnell, bookkeeper, J.H. Ivey, collection clerk; R.M. McConnell, exchange clerk.[6]
In January 1894, W.P. Armstrong was re-elected president, R.L. Ivey, cashier; W.H. Boynton, assistant cashier; and Messrs. Frank and Ray McConnell and James Ivey to their respective positions.[7]
On Tuesday, January 22, 1901, at the annual meeting of the stockholders, the following directors were elected: W.H. Boynton, F.P. McConnell, A.G. Parish, A.W. Jones, and Houston C. Armstrong. Subsequently at the directors' meeting, W.H. Boynton was elected president and P.P. McConnell, cashier. Messrs. Boynton and McConnell had been connected with the bank for a number of years as cashier and assistant cashier, respectively.[8]
On Tuesday, January 13, 1904, the following officers elected were: W.H. Boynton, president; F.P. McConnell, cashier; and A.G. Parish, A.W. Jones, and W.H. Boynton, F.P. McConnell, and T.D. Boynton, directors.[9]
On Monday, January 7, 1924, officers and directors were re-elected for the coming year. The directors elected were W.P. Armstrong, F.E. Wilson, W.H. Boynton, T.D. Boynton, H.C. Armstrong. the officers were W.H. Boynton, president; T.D. Boynton, vice president and cashier; James H. Iven and W.H. Lane, assistant cashiers.[10]
In March 1927, W.H. Lane, assistant cashier of the Isbell National Bank for many years, resigned to take over active management of the insurance business of Boynton, Ivey & Lane. A patron of the bank was heard to remark, "will miss Lane more from the 'cage' than I would the money."[11]
On September 27, 1936, William Hardie Boynton, died at the age of 68. He was president of the Isbell National Bank.[12] In February 1900 he married the daughter of Judge J.E. Camp, Miss Maud Camp in the First Baptist Church. She had long been a favorite in Talladega society the daughter of Hon. J.E. Camp, probate judge of Talladega County. Mr. Boynton was linked with one of the oldest and most prominent families, the Isbells and Boyntons.[13] He was a grandson of the bank's founder Major James Isbell.
On June 3, 1948, a century of operation was observed by the Isbell National Bank. President H.C. McConnell, Jr., announced the anniversary would be marked with open house to which the citizens of Talladega and officials of correspondent banks throughout the state had been invited. Talladega was a growing, agriculturally-minded 13-year-old when Major James Isbell organized in 1848 one of the first banking establishments in the heart of what had been Creek Indian country. Transportation was a problem, but the Central Plank Road from Montgomery was underway and a railroad was being discussed. A weekly stage coach provided mail service. State banks were few and far between. Major Isbell was a North Carolinian by birth, the son of a veteran of the Revolutionary War. He settled in Lowndesboro, Alabama in 1831 and moved to Talladega in 1836. Major Isbell also organized the City National Bank of Selma in 1870, serving as president of that institution until his death in 1871. For two years, the bank operated under the name of James Isbell, banker. In 1850, his son, Robert Houston Isbell, became actively connected with the bank and the name was changed to that of Isbell & Son, Bankers. When the war between the states came, the Isbell Bank made its way without merger, re-organization or failure. During Reconstruction, the present bank building was completed and equipped and the business house moved from the "counting room" at Isbell's Corner at the corner of North and East Street. Upon the death of Major Isbell in 1871, his son, Capt. Robert H. Isbell, became senior partner and the name of the bank was changed to that of Isbell & Company, Bankers. William Park Armstrong, son-in-law of James Isbell, joined the firm. On August 23, 1892, Capt. Isbell died. Under the terms of the will and co-partnership contract, the banking business of Isbell & Co. was carried on under the director of Capt. W.P. Armstrong, sole executor of the Isbell estate and surviving partner, R.L. Ivey.
When William H. Boynton died, his brother, Theodore Dwight Boynton succeeded him as president. J.L. Chambers was president from 1939-1947. At the death of Mr. Chambers, H.C. McConnell, Jr., succeeded him as president. In 1948, the directors were Mr. McConnell, Dr. C.L. Salter, C.W. Stringer, W.N. Boynton, and W.H. Clardy.[14]
Official Bank Title
1: The Isbell National Bank of Talladega, AL
Bank Note Types Issued
A total of $1,192,900 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1893 and 1935. This consisted of a total of 96,379 notes (77,916 large size and 18,463 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 3x10-20 1 - 5350 $10s with abnormal border variety 1882 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 2475 $10s with abnormal border variety 1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 1900 1902 Plain Back 3x10-20 1901 - 11654 1929 Type 1 6x10 1 - 1902 1929 Type 1 6x20 1 - 440 1929 Type 2 5 1 - 72 1929 Type 2 10 1 - 3511 1929 Type 2 20 1 - 828
Bank Presidents and Cashiers
Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1893 - 1935):
Presidents:
Cashiers:
- Robert Lee Ivey, 1893-1895
- William Hardie Boynton, 1896-1900
- COL Frank Percy McConnell, 1901-1904
- John Franklin Reynolds, 1905-1912
- Theodore Dwight Boynton, 1917-1928
- James Houston Ivey, (Sr.), 1929-1935
Other Known Bank Note Signers
Bank Note History Links
Sources
- Talladega, AL, 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
- ↑ "1st Bank of Alabama". https://www.fbal.bank/about-us Retrieved May 18, 2024.
- ↑ Our Mountain Home, Talladega, AL, Wed., Jan. 9, 1889.
- ↑ Ledger-Enquirer, Columbus, GA, Tue., Dec. 6, 1892.
- ↑ The News and Advance, Lynchburg, VA, Thu., Jan. 12, 1893.
- ↑ The Selma Times, Wed., Jan. 25, 1893.
- ↑ Talladega Daily Home and Our Mountain Home, Talladega, AL, Tue., May 25, 1948.
- ↑ The Birmingham News., Birmingham, AL, Fr., Jan. 19, 1894.
- ↑ Our Mountain Home, Talladega, AL, Wed., Jan. 23, 1901.
- ↑ Our Mountain Home, Talladega, AL, Wed., Jan. 13, 1904.
- ↑ Birmingham Post-Herald, Birmingham, AL, Sat., Jan. 12, 1924.
- ↑ Our Mountain Home, Talladega, AL, Wed., Mar. 2, 1927.
- ↑ The Montgomery Advertiser, Montgomery, AL, Tue., Sep. 29, 1936.
- ↑ The Birmingham News, Birmingham, AL, Fri., Feb. 16, 1900.
- ↑ Talladega Daily Home and Our Mountain Home, Talladega, AL, Tue., May 25, 1948.