National Bank of Commerce of Kansas City, MO (Charter 3760)
NB of Commerce of Kansas City, Missouri, Kansas City, MO (Chartered 1887 - Liquidated 1912)
Town History
Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the most populated municipality of the Kansas City metropolitan area, which straddles the Kansas–Missouri state line and has a population of 2,392,035. Most of the city lies within Jackson County, with portions spilling into Clay, Cass, and Platte counties. Kansas City was founded in the 1830s as a port on the Missouri River at its confluence with the Kansas River coming in from the west. On June 1, 1850, the town of Kansas was incorporated; shortly after came the establishment of the Kansas Territory. Confusion between the two ensued, and the name Kansas City was assigned to distinguish them soon after.
The city is composed of several neighborhoods, including the River Market District in the north, the 18th and Vine District in the east, and the Country Club Plaza in the south. Celebrated cultural traditions include Kansas City jazz; theater, as a center of the Vaudevillian Orpheum circuit in the 1920s; the Chiefs and Royals sports franchises; and famous cuisine based on Kansas City-style barbecue, Kansas City strip steak, and craft breweries. It serves as one of the two county seats of Jackson County, along with the major suburb of Independence. Other major suburbs include the Missouri cities of Blue Springs and Lee's Summit and the Kansas cities of Overland Park, Olathe, Lenexa, and Kansas City, Kansas.
Kansas City had 43 National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and 40 of those banks issued National Bank Notes.
Bank History
- Organized July 19, 1887
- Chartered July 25, 1887
- Succeeded Bank of Commerce
- Absorbed 4464 by consolidation June 30, 1897 (Metropolitan National Bank, Kansas City, MO)
- Absorbed 3904 by consolidation August 27, 1897 (Midland National Bank, Kansas City, MO)
- Absorbed 3637 January 12, 1909 (Union National Bank, Kansas City, MO)
- Liquidated September 24, 1912
- Consolidated with 10231 (Southwest NB of Commerce/NB of Comm, Kansas City, MO)
- Circulation assumed by 10231 (Southwest NB of Commerce/NB of Comm, Kansas City, MO)
The National Bank of Commerce of Kansas City began as the Kansas City Savings Association which was incorporated in 1865 with capital of $20,000 of which $10,000 was paid up. Dr. Jas. Buchanan Bell was president and C.J. White cashier. The interests of Dr. Bell were purchased by W.A. Powell who became president of the association. In 1881, Dr. W.S. Woods bought the interest of Mr. Powell and became the president and continued to serve in this capacity until December 1907. In 1881, because of changes in the statutes of Missouri regulating savings associations, it was deemed expedient to surrender the charter as a savings bank and to take out a charter as a state bank. Accordingly, the institution became the Bank of Commerce, and the capital was increased to $200,000. In 1887, the state charter was surrendered and a national charter adopted with the name being changed to the National Bank of Commerce.
In May 1897, the National Bank of Commerce absorbed the Metropolitan National Bank and in July 1897, absorbed the Midland National Bank, and in November 1908, absorbed the Union National Bank.
J.W. Perry, president 1909-1911, was a Missourian having been born in Nodaway County, Missouri and was engaged in the banking business in that section in Fredericktown and in St. Louis for many years. In 1909, at 39, he was elected to the presidency of the National Bank of Commerce of Kansas City, he was vice president of the National Bank of Commerce in St. Louis. In 1922, his holdings were sold to the Theodore Gary Interests and Perry became President of the Associated Telephone and Telegraph Co., a Gary operation. He retired in 1936 and became J.W. Perry, the builder. He was a fighter of the old Pendergast machine and an organizer of the Forward Kansas City Committee of 22,000 reformers. His interests turned to the Minnesota Avenue, Inc., which held extensive business properties in Kansas City, Kansas and had responsibility for the Public Levee terminal which it transformed from relative idleness into an active warehouse center. With a flare for the dramatic, he appeared at a board of the city commissioners meeting carrying a peck of apples. "In my travels over the world," he said, "this is the nicest basket of apples I've ever been able to buy for $1.25. Now if we could get the farmers in our county to put in a few of these trees (they were winesap graft), we'd live better and look better. There isn't a good orchard of any size in Wyandotte County."
The Southwest National Bank, Charter 9311, would merge with the National Bank of Commerce and the business of the former would be moved to the big banking room of the National Bank of Commerce at Tenth and Walnut Streets. The Southwest National Bank would abandon the room it occupied in the New York Life Building. J.J. Heim, president of the Kansas City Breweries Company, a vice president and a big stockholder in the National Bank of Commerce verified the news as he was one of the principal movers in bringing the merger about. In July 1912, J.W. Perry, president of the National Bank of Commerce and F.P. Neal, president of the Southwest National Bank were in Washington where they obtained the approval of the comptroller of the currency for the merger. The name of the merged banks would be the Southwest National Bank of Commerce. Mr. Perry would be president and Mr. Neal, chairman of the board of directors. The other officers of the National Bank of Commerce and J.M. Moore, cashier and Eugene P. Davis, assistant cashier of the Southwest National Bank would be retained. The capital stock of the bank would be $3 million, the aggregate of the $2 million capital stock of the National Bank of Commerce and the $1 million capital stock of the Southwest National Bank. The deal contemplated that holders of the shares in the two respective banks would exchange their shares for an equal number of shares in the merged bank. No bonus would be paid for stock in either bank. The new bank would be the largest in Kansas City and in the Southwest. The last statement made June 14 showed the deposits of the National Bank of Commerce to be $19,466,162 and the Southwest National to be $9,687,952 for a total of $29,154,114. The same statement showed the deposits of the First National Bank which were the greatest of any bank in Kansas City to be $26,308,593. The National Bank of Commerce showed surplus and undivided profits of $781,505 and the Southwest National $337,469. This gave the stock of the National Bank of Commerce a book value of $139 a share and the Southwest National Bank a book value of $133 a share.
Official Bank Title(s)
1: The National Bank of Commerce of Kansas City, Missouri, Kansas City, MO
Bank Note Types Issued
A total of $6,871,550 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1887 and 1912. This consisted of a total of 605,826 notes (605,826 large size and No 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 - 10000 1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 28758 1882 Brown Back 50-100 1 - 7489 1902 Red Seal 3x10-20 1 - 10000 1902 Date Back 4x5 1 - 44580 1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 54374
Bank Presidents and Cashiers
Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1887 - 1912):
Presidents:
Cashiers:
- Churchill J. White, 1887-1894
- William Ashley Rule, 1895-1907
- Edward Ridgely, 1908-1908
- James Thomas Bradley, 1909-1911
Other Bank Note Signers
- There are currently no known Vice President or Assistant Cashier bank note signers for this bank.
Wiki Links
- Missouri Bank Note History
- General information on Kansas City (Wikipedia)
- General information on Jackson County (Wikipedia)
- General information on Missouri (Wikipedia)
Sources
- Kansas City, MO, 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
- The Bankers Magazine, The Bankers Publishing Co., New York, Vol. 80, 1910, pp 518-526.
- The Kansas City Star, Kansas City, MO, Sat., July 13, 1912.
- The Kansas City Star, Kansas City, MO, Wed., Aug. 1, 1962.