Market Street National Bank, Philadelphia, PA (Charter 3684)
Market Street National Bank, Philadelphia, PA (Chartered 1887 - Open past 1935)
Town History
Philadelphia is located in Philadelphia County.
Philadelphia had 70 National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and 62 of those banks issued National Bank Notes.
Bank History
- Organized April 16, 1887
- Chartered April 28, 1887
- Bank was Open past 1935
- Merged with Tradesmens NB and TC, Philadelphia, PA (Charter 570) in 1955
On Wednesday, March 9, 1887, subscribers to the stock of the Market Street National Bank met at the office of Hood, Bonbright & Company. Colonel Thomas G. Hood was elected chairman of the meeting and the following gentlemen directors of the new bank: Charles H. Banes, W.T. Latts, Edward T. Steel, Edward Hoopes, George D. McCreary, Charles W. Henry, Amos Hillborn, Samuel Y. Heebner, George B. Woodman, Daniel R. Paul, Thomas F. Jones and Stuart Wood. The bank organized because of the necessity for it being no bank on Market Street from Seventh to Fifteenth Streets. The bank would be located on Market Street between Eleventh and Broad. The capital stock would be $500,000 with 50% paid in necessary before the charter would be granted.
On April 28, 1887, the comptroller of the currency authorized the Market Street National Bank with capital of $600,000 to begin business. The bank opened on Monday, May 24 in temporary quarters at No. 1017 Market Street. As soon as the bank held title to 1107 Market, a fine building would be erected there. Charles H. Banes was president.
On Tuesday, January 10, 1888, the following stockholders were elected directors for the ensuing year: Charles H. Banes, George D. McCreary, Edward Hoopes, Samuel Y. Heebner, Charles W. Henry, Amos Hillborn, Thomas F. Jones, Isaac Blum, Henry D. Welsh, George B. Woodman, Stuart Wood, and John G. Croxton. The directors met on the 13th and unanimously re-elected Charles H. Banes, president and George D. McCreary, vice president. On Monday, May 21st, the new building of the Market Street National was open for inspection to those who had the privilege of tickets. Though plain and unpretentious, the solid mahogany woodwork, the fittings of oxidized silver and the screens of plate glass gave a substantial appearance. The mammoth safe weighed forty tons and cost $10,000. The bank would take up its new quarters at 1107 Market Street on Thursday, May 31st.
On Tuesday, January 9, 1900, at the annual election, the following stockholders were elected directors for the ensuing year: George H. Earle, Jr., James F. Sullivan, George D. McCreary, Samuel Y. Heebner, Charles W. Henry, Thomas F. Jones, Isaac Blum, Stuart Wood, John G. Croxton, A. Maxwell Sheppard, W. Atlee Burpee, Edward R. Strawbridge, Richard Y. Cook, August B. Loeb, and William F. Harrity. The board met on the 16th and re-elected George H. Earle, Jr., president; James F. Sullivan, first vice president; and George D. McCreary, second vice president. B.F. Dennisson was cashier. At the close of business, February 13th, 1900, the bank reported Loans and investments of $3,026,970.46, due from banks $419,464.70, Cash and Reserve $1,285,329.06. The liabilities were capital $500,000, surplus and profits $137,345.01, circulation $45,000, and deposits $4,049,419.21.
In January 1923, the directors were James F. Sullivan, president; J.B. Sheppard & Sons, Edward R. Wood, Jr., Mechanical Engineer; R. Livingston Sullivan, vice president; David Burpee, president, W. Atlee Burpee Co.; William H. Rometsch, Sec. & Treas. Fletcher Works; John J. Sullivan, attorney-at-law; Ralph Earle, vice president, Penna. Warehousing & Safe Deposit Co.; Charles C. Drueding, Treas. Drueding Bros. Co.; Willis Fleisher, Treas. Shelbourne Mills; Arthur W. Jones, Treas., Wm. Simpson Sons & Co.; T. Charlton Henry, attorney-at-law; Richard D. Leonard, Genl. Mgr. Atlantic Refining Co.; Fred F. Spellissy, cashier; and Wm. V. McGrath Jr., President, Beneficial Saving Fund. The officers were James F. Sullivan, president; R. Livingston Sullivan, vice president; Fred F. Spellissy, cashier; William H. Trappe and William H. Merker, assistant cashiers. Total resources at the end of 1922 were $22,210,884.59.
On August 19, 1929, announcement was made of the Market Street National Bank Building, a skyscraper bank and office building to be erected at the northeast corner of Juniper and Market Streets on the site of the Globe Theatre. Albert M. Greenfield & Co., representing the Market and Juniper Building Corp. which bought the property would construct the new structure at an estimated cost in excess of $6,500,000. The main or banking floor of the structure was leased by the Market Street National for 30 years. The site had a Market Street frontage of 58 feet with a depth along Juniper street of 180 feet. It was opposite City Hall and adjacent to the new City Hall Annex. The Finance Company of Pennsylvania held title to the premises. The Globe Theatre site at 1319-1323 Market Street, was assembled between 1855 and 1866 by Joseph Harrison, Jr. The property remained in the Harrison family for nearly 50 years and was sold by the estate in 1913 to Harry F. Ertel who later conveyed the property to the Finance Company of Pennsylvania. At the time of its construction, the theatre was regarded as one of the outstanding show houses in Philadelphia. It was operated as a combination vaudeville and motion picture house and in recent years was devoted entirely to motion pictures under direction of the Stanley Co. of America.
In July 1930, the 24-story Market Street National Bank Building was rapidly nearing completion, boasting of several new records for speed in construction of a modern office building in Philadelphia. The record time in which the steel framework was set in place drew favorable comment from City Hall directly opposite the site. The brick contractor had a mark to make in the laying of 1,500,000 bricks with the first placed on April 15 and the last expected to be completed at the end of July. Edward Atkins was the brick contractor. Westinghouse Co. had the elevator contract. Equipped with the latest safety and leveling devices, a person desiring to go from the first to twenty-fourth floor would arrive in less than half a minute. That required developing a speed in excess of 800 feet per minute.
Market Street National Bank Building, 1-21 Juniper Street, Philadelphia. Four high resolution images of the building and art deco details from the Library of Congress.
In January 1933, the directors were R. Livingston Sullivan, David Burpee, William H. Rometsch, John J. Sullivan, Ralph Earle, Charles C. Drueding, Willis Fleisher, Arthur W. Jones, Fred F. Spellissy, Harry E. Paisley, Louis E. Pequignot. The officers were R. Livingston Sullivan, president; Fred F. Spellissy, vice president; John J. Sullivan, vice president and trust officer; William H. Merker, vice president & cashier; Jason E. Delaney, vice president; Ralph W. Hurst, assistant cashier; and Charles H. Mears, assistant cashier & auditor. As of the end of 1932, the bank had total resources of $30,392,205.95.
On Friday, September 23, 1955, the boards of Tradesmens Bank & Trust Co. and Market Street National Bank met to approve the merger of the two institutions. Interestingly, the merger was first initiated on January 19, 1899, in a letter from the late George H. Earle, Jr., then president of Tradesmens, to the late Samuel W. Heebner, then president of Market Street National. Earle wrote "If this proposition is accepted, I am willing as requested by you and the committee to at once accept the presidency of the company, and Messrs. Cook, Loeb and Sullivan, as may be desired, have signified their willingness to become members of your board. I think it proper to state to you that it would be my ultimate purpose to consolidate this bank with the Tradesmens Bank and so make one of the strongest, if not the strongest, national bank in Philadelphia." Howarad A. Loeb, present Tradesmens board chairman was the son of the Loeb mentioned, and the Sullivan, the father of R. Livingston Sullivan, present president of Market Street. Earle's grandson, George H. Earle, 4th, was vice president of Tradesmens.
On January 3, 1956, the Tradesmens Bank & Trust Co. opened for business, the merger having been completed over the year's end. R. Livingston Sullivan, president of Market Street National was the board chairman of the combined bank; Percy C. Madeira, Jr., chairman of the executive committee; James M. Large, president; and Warren H. Woodring, executive vice president. The directors were Boyd T. Barnard, Edward C. Bostock, Francis P. Burns, David Burpee, J. Hamilton Cheston, Joel Claster, Philip H. Cooney, John Curtin, Jr., Edwin K. Daly, Ralph Earle, L.A. Estes, W.R. Gerstnecker, Birkett Howarth, George H. Johnson, James M. Large, Harry S. Louchheim, Percy C. Madeira, Jr., C.F. Norberg, Thomas L. Prendergast, John J. Sullivan, R. Livingston Sullivan, Charles I. Thompson, Thomas Raeburn White, George D. Widener, and Howard A. Wolf. The main office of the bank would continue at Broad and Chestnut Streets with seven other offices: Market and Juniper Streets, 320 Chestnut Street; Fifth and Chestnut Streets; 19 S. 52d Street; 5614 Germantown Avenue; Broad and Louden Streets; and Erie Avenue and I Street.
Official Bank Title(s)
1: The Market Street National Bank of Philadelphia, PA
Bank Note Types Issued
A total of $12,412,400 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1887 and 1935. This consisted of a total of 920,748 notes (907,440 large size and 13,308 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 4x5 1 - 37480 1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 22414 1882 Brown Back 50-100 1 - 2400 1902 Red Seal 4x5 1 - 13300 1902 Red Seal 3x10-20 1 - 7080 1902 Red Seal 50-100 1 - 1200 1902 Date Back 4x5 1 - 79500 1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 47000 1902 Date Back 50-100 1 - 1800 1902 Date Back 3x50-100 1 - 14600 1902 Plain Back 3x50-100 14601 - 17386 1929 Type 1 6x50 1 - 1646 1929 Type 1 6x100 1 - 552 1929 Type 2 5 1 - 120
Bank Presidents and Cashiers
Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1887 - 1935):
Presidents:
- LTC Charles Henry Banes, 1887-1896
- Samuel Y. Heebner, 1897-1898
- George Howard Earle, Jr. , 1899-1910
- James Francis Sullivan, 1911-1929
- R. Livingston Sullivan, 1930-1935
Cashiers:
- Benjamin Franklin Dennisson, 1887-1900
- William P. Sinnett, 1901-1918
- Frederic F. Spellissy, 1919-1929
- William H. Merker, 1930-1935
Other Known Bank Note Signers
- No other known bank note signers for this bank
Bank Note History Links
- Market Street National Bank, Philadelphia, PA History (NB Lookup)
- Pennsylvania Bank Note History (BNH Wiki)
Sources
- Philadelphia, PA, 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
- Philadelphia and Notable Philadelphians, Moses King, Blanchard Press, Isaac H. Blanchard Co., New York, 1902, p. 5 & 18.
- The Philadelphia Times, Philadelphia, PA, Thu., Mar. 10, 1887.
- The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, Fri., Apr. 29, 1887.
- The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, Sat., May 21, 1887.
- The Philadelphia Times, Philadelphia, PA, Sat., Jan. 14, 1888.
- The Philadelphia Times, Philadelphia, PA, Tue., May 22, 1888.
- The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, Wed., Jan. 17, 1900.
- The Philadelphia Times, Philadelphia, PA, Thu., Feb. 22, 1900.
- The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, Wed., Jan. 3, 1923.
- The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, Tue., Aug. 20, 1929.
- The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, Sun., July 13, 1930.
- The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, Tue., Jan. 3, 1933.
- The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, Mon., Sep. 26, 1955.
- The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, Wed., Jan. 4, 1956.