National Bank, Cortland, NY (Charter 2272)

Postcard showing The National Bank of Cortland, New York, banking house ca1920s. Courtesy of Adam Stroup

National Bank, Cortland, NY (Chartered 1875 - Closed (Merger) 1999)

Town History

Photo of The National Bank of Cortland, New York, ca2020s. Courtesy of Google Maps

Cortland is a city in Cortland County, New York. Known as the Crown City, Cortland is in New York's Southern Tier region. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 19,204. It is the county seat of Cortland County.

Cortland, settled in 1791, was made a village in 1853 (rechartered in 1864), and incorporated in 1900 as New York's 41st city. It is named after Pierre Van Cortlandt, the first lieutenant governor of New York. When the county was formed in 1808, Cortland vied with other villages to become the county seat. Known as the "Crown City" because of its location on a plain formed by the convergence of seven valleys, Cortland is 1,130 feet above sea level. Forty stars representing the 40 cities incorporated before Cortland circle the State of New York and Crown on the city's official seal. The seven points of the crown represent the seven valleys surrounding Cortland. The 41st star in the center of the crown illustrates Cortland as the incorporated city closest to New York's geographic center.

Cortland's leading industry in the late 19th and early 20th centuries was the Wickwire Brothers wire-drawing mill, noted for its production of wire hardware cloth for use as window screens. The extent of the Wickwires' wealth is demonstrated in the two magnificent mansions they commissioned. The Victorian Chateauesque-style home of Chester Wickwire is now operated as the 1890 House Museum & Center for Victorian Arts. Charles Wickwire's 1912 home is now owned and operated by the State University of New York (SUNY) Cortland Alumni Association. It is open to the public and used by the Alumni Association to host college-related events and house visiting dignitaries.

Cortland was also the location of Brockway Motor Company, a pioneering truck maker. Begun in 1875 as Brockway Carriage Works, it was taken over by Mack Trucks in 1956, and survived until 1977. The city continues to host an annual show of Brockway trucks. From 1960 to 1992 Smith Corona typewriters were manufactured in Cortland.

Cortland boasts a classic octagon house. The Cortland Rural Cemetery is styled as a garden setting and is still in operation. In 1868 Cortland became the home of the Cortland Normal School, which gradually developed into a four-year college. With graduate programs and research capacity, it has expanded into the SUNY at Cortland.

Cortland had three National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and all three of those banks issued National Bank Notes. Cortland also had one Obsolete Bank that issued Obsolete Bank Notes during the Obsolete Bank Note Era (1782-1866).

Bank History

Organized May 13, 1875
Chartered June 1, 1875
Succeeded Bank of Cortland
Bank was Open past 1935
For Bank History after 1935 see FDIC Bank History website
Merged into The Oneida Valley National Bank of Oneida, NY (Charter 1090) April 16, 1999

Alliance Bank was created in April 1999, following the merger of two long-standing Central New York banks: The Oneida Valley National Bank and The First National Bank of Cortland.

Official Bank Title(s)

1: The National Bank of Cortland, NY

Bank Note Types Issued

1882 Brown Back $10 bank note with pen signatures of F.J. Peck, Cashier and S.S. Knox, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

1929 Type 2 $10 bank note with printed signatures of R. Elliott Owens, Cashier and F.J. Peck, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

A total of $4,500,250 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1875 and 1935. This consisted of a total of 394,445 notes (291,524 large size and 102,921 small size notes).

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

Series/Type	Sheet/Denoms	Serial#s	Sheet Comments
Original Series	4x5	1 - 4500
Series 1875	4x5	1 - 8472
1882 Brown Back	3x10-20	1 - 10705
1882 Date Back	3x10-20	1 - 10380
1902 Date Back	3x10-20	1 - 2500
1902 Plain Back	3x10-20	2501 - 38824
1929 Type 1	6x10	1 - 11326
1929 Type 1	6x20	1 - 2974
1929 Type 2	10	1 - 13350
1929 Type 2	20	1 - 3771

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1875 - 1935):

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

Cortland, NY, 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://bbdata.banknotehistory.com
The Ithaca Journal, Ithaca, NY, Wed., Aug. 4, 1999.