Kent National Bank, Kent, OH (Charter 652)

Postcard of the Kent National Bank, Kent, Ohio, ca1920s. Courtesy of Adam Stroup

Kent National Bank, Kent, OH (Chartered 1864 - Open past 1935)

Town History

NEEDED: a recent photo of the bank or another postcard.

Kent is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the largest city in Portage County. It is located along the Cuyahoga River in Northeast Ohio on the western edge of the county. The population was 28,215 at the 2020 Census.

Part of the Connecticut Western Reserve, Kent was settled in 1805 and was known for many years as Franklin Mills. Settlers were attracted to the area due to its location along the Cuyahoga River as a place for water-powered mills. Later development came in the 1830s and 1840s as a result of the settlement's position along the route of the Pennsylvania and Ohio Canal. Leading up to the American Civil War, Franklin Mills was noted for its activity in the Underground Railroad. With the decline of the canal and the emergence of the railroad, the town became the home of the Atlantic and Great Western Railroad maintenance shops through the influence of Marvin Kent. In 1864 the town was renamed Kent in honor of and in gratitude for Marvin Kent's efforts. It was incorporated as a village in 1867 and became a city after the 1920 Census. Today Kent is a college town best known as the home of the main campus of Kent State University, founded in 1910, and as the site of the 1970 Kent State shootings.

As the home of the Davey Tree Expert Company, Kent is known as "The Tree City" while residents are referred to as "Kentites". The city has produced a number of notable individuals, particularly in politics, athletics, and the entertainment industry.

Kent had one National Bank chartered during the Bank Note Era and it issued National Bank Notes.

Bank History

Organized August 31, 1864
Chartered December 24, 1864
Bank was Open past 1935

On January 10, 1865, the new bank at Kent organized under the name of The Kent National Bank held its annual meeting and elected Zenas Kent, Marvin Kent, W.S. Streator, Porter B. Hall, and Charles H. Kent, directors; Zenas Kent, President; and E.L. Day, Cashier. In 1849 the Franklin Bank, of Portage County, was established, and Mr. Zenas Kent chosen as its President. He held this position until the bank was changed to the Kent National Bank in 1864. Zenas Kent died suddenly on Wednesday evening, October 18, 1865 at his resident in Kent. He was born in Middletown, Connecticut on July 12, 1786 and was 80 years old when he died. Mr. Kent established a number of businesses in Portage County and was the treasurer of the Atlantic & Great Western Railroad.

On Thursday, April 9, 1959, Paul E. Beck, president of the Kent National Bank, announced that plans were being made to merge the Kent National Bank and the First National Bank of Garrettsville. Directors of both banks had already approved the plan and the merger awaited approval by the stockholders and the Comptroller of the Currency. The merged bank would be the largest in Portage County and the name would change to Portage County National Bank with Mr. Beck as president.

On December 1, 1971, Huntington Bancshares Inc., the Columbus-based bank holding company which completed its affiliation with Portage National and Paul E. Beck was elected a director of of Huntington Bancshares.

Two Akron area banks affiliated with the Columbus-based Huntington Bancshares Inc., the state's sixth largest bank holding company, changed names on Monday, March 31, 1975. The First National Bank of Wadsworth became the Huntingdon First National Bank of Medina County and the Portage National Bank became the Huntington Portage National Bank of Kent. Linford E. Irwin continued as president of the Wadsworth bank and Paul E. Beck in Kent. In all 12 banks were in the Huntington organization which had assets of $1.5 billion, 80 offices and 2,300 employees in 13 counties and 24 cities. The name Huntington was added to the name of each of the affiliates.

Official Bank Title(s)

1: The Kent National Bank, Kent, OH

Bank Note Types Issued

1902 Red Seal $10 bank note with pen signatures of G.E. Hinds, Cashier and Marvin Kent, President. Courtesy of Lyn Knight Auctions, www.lynknight.com

1902 Plain Back $10 bank note with printed signatures of G.J. Stauffer, Cashier and P.W. Eigner, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

1929 Type 1 $10 bank note with printed signatures of G.J. Stauffer, Cashier and P.W. Eigner, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

A total of $2,022,780 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1864 and 1935. This consisted of a total of 181,403 notes (155,616 large size and 25,787 small size notes).

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

Series/Type	Sheet/Denoms	Serial#s	Sheet Comments
Original Series	3x1-2	1 - 2400
Original Series	4x5	1 - 2000
Original Series	3x10-20	1 - 2320
Series 1875	3x1-2	1 - 1360
Series 1875	4x5	1 - 250
Series 1875	3x10-20	1 - 2032
1882 Brown Back	3x10-20	1 - 4944
1902 Red Seal	3x10-20	1 - 2100
1902 Date Back	3x10-20	1 - 4090
1902 Plain Back	3x10-20	4091 - 21498
1929 Type 1	6x10	1 - 2752
1929 Type 1	6x20	1 - 782
1929 Type 2	10	1 - 3634
1929 Type 2	20	1 - 949

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1864 - 1936):

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

Kent, OH, 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
Cleveland Daily Leader, Cleveland, OH, Thu., Jan. 19, 1865.
Cleveland Daily Leader, Cleveland, OH, Tue., Oct. 24, 1865.
The Daily Reporter, Dover, OH, Fri., Apr. 10, 1959.
The News-Messenger, Fremont, OH, Fri., Apr. 10, 1959.
The Akron Beacon Journal, Akron, OH, Fri., Dec. 3, 1971.
The Akron Beacon Journal, Akron, OH, Mon., Mar. 31, 1975.