Jefferson Park NB, Jefferson Park/Chicago, IL (Charter 10108)

The Jefferson Park National Bank of Chicago, Illinois, ca1926.

Jefferson Park NB/Jefferson Park NB, Jefferson Park/Chicago, IL (Chartered 1911 - Receivership 1932)

Town History

The old Jefferson Park National Bank on the corner of Lawrence and Milwaukee Avenues, ca2021. Courtesy of Google Maps

Jefferson Park is one of the 77 community areas of Chicago, located on the Northwest Side of the city. It is bordered by the community areas of Norwood Park to the northwest, Forest Glen to the northeast, Portage Park to the south, and the suburb of Harwood Heights to the west.

Settlement in the vicinity of Jefferson Park began in the 1830s with John Kinzie Clark and Elijah Wentworth, whose claim was near what is now the Jefferson Park Metra Station, where he operated a tavern and inn. The tiny settlement of traders, hunters, and farmers consisted of simple one and two room log cabins until Abram Gale, for whom Gale Street is named, built the first frame house in Jefferson. Jefferson Park became the hub of an independent township that was incorporated at the nearby Dickinson Tavern as Jefferson Township in 1850 until annexed by the city of Chicago in 1889. The area was once home to a significant population of Volga Germans, and one of the area's one time local landmarks was a local apartment building in the vicinity of the park along Higgins Avenue known by locals as "the Russian Hotel".

Jefferson Park is also home to the Northwest Chicago Historical Society which is dedicated to preserving the area's rich history as well as most historical events and lectures.

Jefferson Park/Chicago had one National Bank chartered during the Bank Note Era, and it issued National Bank Notes.

Bank History

Organized October 5, 1911
Chartered November 29, 1911
2: Receivership June 25, 1932

The Jefferson Park National Bank of Chicago was organized in 1911 by Fred H. Esdohr, Peter F. Thomsen, Herman H. Esdohr and George M. Hayes and was opened for business on December 11, 1911 with capital of $50,000 and paid-in surplus of $5,000. Its first officers were as follows: George M. Hayes, president; Peter P. Thomson, vice president; and Fred H. Esdohr, cashier. George M. Hayes served until January, 1921, when he was succeeded in the presidency by Fred H. Esdohr and Rodney D. Andrews was elected cashier. Peter P. Thomsen died in 1923 and in January of the following year, Joseph E. Fitch and Rodney D. Andrews were elected vice presidents. John F. Iglewski and Austin H. Bast were made assistant cashiers in January 1925, and the members of the board of directors were Fred H. Esdohr, Joseph E. Fitch, Anton Jensen, Henry Gerken, William B. Anderson, Thomas Knapik, Fred A. Boswell, Rodney D. Andrews and R. E. Wilcox.

The Jefferson Park National Bank was located at 4815 Milwaukee Avenue until after 10 years it moved into new quarters at the corner of Milwaukee and Lawrence Avenues on December 10, 1921. The new bank was erected in 1921, costing approximately $185,000. In April 1921, the capital was increased to $200,000 by issuing additional stock and it was further increased in 1924 to $250,000 with surplus of $75,000.

In 1919, in order to address customers' needs for real estate loans, the Jefferson Park Agency & Loan Company was formed with capital of $25,000. In 1923, the Jefferson Park Safe Deposit Company was formed in order to operate safety deposit vaults. Both of these institutions were led by Fred. H. Esdohr.

    The Jefferson Park National Bank was the oldest national hank on the northwest side. At the time of its organization there was a law requiring any national bank organized in Chicago to have a capital of $200,000 which was then prohibitive in outlying districts. Fred H. Esdohr, however, desiring to establish a bank in the section which had always been his home, made application for a charter upon the contention that Jefferson Park was not a part of Chicago in the sense intended by the banking law, but a separate community needing banking facilities. In the face of strong opposition on the part of some of the "loop" bankers, he was finally granted a charter, and this opened the way for the establishment of national banks in many similar communities.  Up until this time there had only been three national banks outside of the "loop."

Six Chicago banks, five of them state institutions and one a national bank were closed on Wednesday, June 22, 1932. The Jefferson Park National Bank was closed by A.P. Leyburn, chief federal bank examiner for the Chicago district at the request of the directors. It had capital of $300,000, surplus of $60,000 and deposits of $1,100,000.

Official Bank Title(s)

1: The Jefferson Park National Bank, Jefferson Park, IL

2: The Jefferson Park National Bank of (6/28/1921), Chicago, IL

Bank Note Types Issued

1902 Plain Back $20 bank note with printed signatures of Rodney D. Andrews, Cashier and Fred H. Esdohr, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

1929 Type 1 $20 bank note with printed signatures of Rodney D. Andrews, Cashier and Fred H. Esdohr, President. The Government Printing Office (GPO) prepared the overprinting plates used to produce this note. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

1929 Type 1 $10 bank note with printed signatures of Rodney D. Andrews, Cashier and Fred H. Esdohr, President. Barnhart Brothers and Spindler (BBS) prepared the overprinting plates used to produce this note. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

A total of $683,320 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1911 and 1932. This consisted of a total of 59,120 notes (47,672 large size and 11,448 small size notes).

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

Series/Type	Sheet/Denoms	Serial#s	Sheet Comments
1: 1902 Date Back	4x5	1 - 1100
1: 1902 Date Back	3x10-20	1 - 900
1: 1902 Plain Back	4x5	1101 - 1750
1: 1902 Plain Back	3x10-20	901 - 1240
2: 1902 Plain Back	3x10-20	1 - 8928
2: 1929 Type 1	6x10	1 - 1484
2: 1929 Type 1	6x20	1 - 424

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1911 - 1932):

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

Jefferson Park/Chicago, IL, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jefferson_Park/Chicago,_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. 3, pp 116-120.
Chicago Tribune, Chicago, IL, Tue., Dec. 6, 1921.
Chicago Tribune, Chicago, IL, Thu., June 23, 1932.