National Branch Bank, Madison, IN (Charter 1457)

From Bank Note History
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Postcard of the National Branch Bank of Madison
Postcard of the National Branch Bank of Madison, Indiana, ca1912. National Branch Bank of Madison was chartered in 1833 as the second state bank of Indiana with James F.D. Lanier as first president. The landmark was replaced in 1954 by a new building which was completely remodeled in 1974. The name changed to Madison Bank & Trust Company. Postcard was printed during the 150th anniversary in 1983 using an original card postmarked 1912.Courtesy of GreatCollections.com

National Branch Bank, Madison, IN (Chartered 1865 - Open past 1935)

Town History

The Bank of the State of Indiana, Branch at Madison obsolete $1
The Bank of the State of Indiana, Branch at Madison obsolete $1, Haxby IN-2, with signatures of G.D. Fitzhugh, Cashier and an unknown President, dated July 1st, 1857. The $1 design features a large round One Dollar medallion at center flanked by portraits of Samuel Merrill, Indiana state treasurer from 1823 to 1834, at left, and an unidentified man at right. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

Madison is a city in and the county seat of Jefferson County, Indiana, along the Ohio River. As of the 2010 United States Census its population was 11,967. Over 55,000 people live within 15 miles of downtown Madison. Madison is the largest city along the Ohio River between Louisville and Cincinnati. In 2006, the majority of Madison's downtown area was designated a National Historic Landmark with 133 blocks of the downtown area known as the Madison Historic Landmark District. In 1860 the population was 8,130, growing to 10,709 by 1870, then declining to a low of 6,530 in 1930.

Madison was laid out and platted in 1810, and the first lots were sold in 1811 by John Paul. It had busy early years due to heavy river traffic and its position as an entry point into the Indiana Territory along the historic Old Michigan Road. Madison's location across the Ohio River from Kentucky, a slave state, made it an important location on the Underground Railroad, which worked to free fugitive slaves. George DeBaptiste's barbershop in town became a nerve center of the local group. By 1850, Madison was the third-largest city in Indiana (after New Albany and Indianapolis), and among the 100 largest cities in the U.S.

Madison is bordered to the west by Clifty Falls State Park, encompassing the canyon of Big Clifty Creek and its tributaries, with several waterfalls, as well as high ground rising 400 feet above the Ohio River Valley. Madison is located on the north side of the Ohio River. It is bordered to the south, across the river, by the city of Milton, Kentucky. U.S. Route 421 passes through the center of town, crossing the Ohio into Kentucky on the Milton–Madison Bridge. US-421 leads north 26 miles to Versailles, Indiana.

Madison had two National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, The First National Bank (Charter 111) and the National Branch Bank (Charter 1457) and both of those banks issued National Bank Notes.

Bank History

The Bank of the State of Indiana, Branch at Madison Counterfeit $5
The Bank of the State of Indiana, Branch at Madison Counterfeit $5, Haxby IN-2, with signatures of G.D. Fitzhugh, Cashier and Hugh McCulloch, President, dated January 2, 1857. The $5 design features a young woman seated in a field with sheep at center flanked by portraits of Judge James Morrison at left, and James F.D. Lanier at right. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com
Bank of the State of Indiana obsolete $100 proof, Haxby IN-2. Deep reddish-orange tinted card proof by Bald, Cousland & Co. dated July 1st, 1857.  A large white "C" as a protector centered over a harvest scene of two men with a scythe and two women carrying a sheaf of grain.
Bank of the State of Indiana obsolete $100 proof, Haxby IN-2. Deep reddish-orange tinted card proof by Bald, Cousland & Co. dated July 1st, 1857.  A large white "C" as a protector centered over a harvest scene of two men with a scythe and two women carrying a sheaf of grain.
The old clock of the Madison Bank & Trust Company
The old clock of the Madison Bank & Trust Company at 213-215 E. Main Street, ca2024. Courtesy of Google Maps
  • Organized June 29, 1865
  • Chartered July 17, 1865
  • Succeeded Madison Branch of the Bank of the State of Indiana
  • In place of Madison's Branch & Powells private Bank
  • Bank was Open past 1935
  • Merged with the Madison Safe Deposit & Trust Company on August 2, 1954 with title change to Madison Bank & Trust Company

The State Bank of Indiana was chartered in 1834 in response to the new Jackson administration and the almost certainty that the Second Bank of the Unites States would not be rechartered. The State Bank of Indiana's charter would last for 25 years, expiring on January 1, 1859.[1] The Madison Branch of the State Bank of Indiana opened on November 19, 1834 with J.F.D. Lanier as president. Lanier was an attorney and financier who would be best known for using $400,000 of his own money as a loan to Indiana so the debt-ridden state could finance Civil War troops. Lanier resigned in 1851. The Madison bank continued as one of 19 branches of a new state bank, the Bank of the State of Indiana, with its main office in Indianapolis.[2]

The Bank of the State of Indiana was chartered in March 1855. Although its charter provisions were virtually the same as those of the State Bank of Indiana, the statewide bank network, with branches in twenty locations across the state was a privately owned institution. Run by capable managers and officers the likes of Hugh McCulloch, future Comptroller of the Currency and Secretary of the Treasury, the bank was immensely successful with almost all branches eventually becoming national banks by the time the bank discontinued active operation in 1865.

On November 2, 1855, the organization the Bank of the State of Indiana was completed. The officers were HUGH McCULLOCH, President; JAMES M. RAY, Cashier; and THOMAS L. SMITH, Attorney. The Board of Directors consisted of SAMUEL P. WILLIAMS, D.G. ROSE, AMZI L. WHEELER, JOHN REYNOLDS, HUGH McCULLOCH, E.P. NEXEN, GEORGE M. JEROLAMAN, JOHN D. DEFREES, JOHN S. NEWMAN, NEWTON CLAYPOOL, GEORGE HIBBEN, MICHAEL G. BRIGHT, THOMAS L. SMITH, JESSE J. BROWN, WASHINGTON C. DePAUW, JOHN ROSS, and THOMAS DOWLING. 

When the charter of the old State Bank expired and a new banking institution under the name of The Bank of the State of Indiana was chartered, James M. Ray was chosen cashier and held that position until after the resignation of the president, Hugh McCulloch and George W. Rathborne, when he was elected president.[3]

Branch Officers:

  • BRANCH AT LIMA. JOHN B. HOWE, President. Directors: John B. Howe, Samuel Bumel, Samuel P. Williams, Thomas J. Spaulding, Sylvanus Halsey, Robert Dykes, and John P. Jones.
  • BRANCH AT LAPORTE. D.G. ROSE, President. SAMUEL BURSON, Cashier. Directors: D.G. Rose, Samuel Burson, S.R. Hall, E.S. Organ, W.C. Hannah, Benjamin. P. Waker, and Willard A. Place.
  • BRANCH AT PLYMOUTH. A.L. WHEELER, President. Directors: A. . Wheeler, N.H. Oglesbee, Rufus Brown, Rufus Hewett, T. McDonald, G.S. Cleveland, and Joseph Evans.
  • BRANCH AT SOUTH BEND. JOHN REYNOLDS, President. ETHAN S. REYNOLDS, Cashier.

Directors: John Reynolds, Albert G. Deavitt, Edmund M. Irwin, William Miller, Benjamin Folsom, John Hammond, Robert Nichor.

  • BRANCH AT FORT WAYNE. HUGH McCULLOCH, President, Directors: Hugh McCulloch, Pliny Hoagland, Melancthon W. Hubbell, William Mitchell, Ochmig Bird, Hugh B. Read, and B. W. Oakley.
  • BRANCH AT LAFAYETTE. E.F. NEXEN, President. Directors: E.F. Nexen, Moses Fowler, James Fallis, C.M. Wheelock, Henry S. Ellsworth, Benjamin Reynolds, and John Lilly.
  • BRANCH AT LOGANSPORT. CYRUS VIGUS, President. Directors: Cyrus Vigils, George Cecil, George M. Jerolaman, T. Mussulman, Franklin Keys, Daniel D. Pratt, and Israel Johnson.
  • BRANCH AT INDIANAPOLIS. WASHINGTON H. TALBOTT, President. Directors: W.H. Talbott, John D. Defrees, Jonathan S. Harvey, Isaac W. Hunter, Hardin Parrish, William B. Beach, and Thomas A. Morris.
  • BRANCH AT RICHMOND. ROBERT MORRISON, President; CHARLES F. COFFIN, Cashier. Directors: Robert Morrison, John S. Newman, Miles Murphy, Daniel P. Wiggins, William Kenworthy, Jesse Meek, and John Suffrins.
  • BRANCH AT CONNERSVILLE. MEREDITH HELM, President. Directors: Meredith Helm, Newton Claypool, Henry Simpson, Sherman Scofield, Henry Goodlander, W. W. Frybarger, and Thos. J. Crisler.
  • BRANCH AT RUSHVILLE. GEORGE HIBBEN, President. Directors: George Hibben, Hamilton Miller, Wm. B. Flinn, W.B. Maddux, James B. Foley, Jacob H. Oglesby, and D.M. Stewart.
  • BRANCH AT MADISON. JOHN MARSH--President. Directors: John Marsh, James B. Merriwether, Joseph W. Chapman, Richard J. Bright, Michael G. Bright, Caleb T. Lodge, and Joseph H.D. Rogers.
  • BRANCH AT JEFFERSONVILLE. CHARLES HOWARD-President. Directors: Charles Howard, Thomas L. Smith, F. F. Collum, Simon Bottorff, George P. Savity, Samuel H. Patterson, and Levi Spanks.
  • BRANCH AT NEW ALBANY. J.J. BROWN, President. P. R. Stoy, Cashier. Directors: J.J. Brown, P.R. Stoy, Thomas Humphreys, W.S. Culbertson, P.M. Wilcox, R.H. Hurlbut, and B.C. Kent.
  • BRANCH AT BEDFORD. BENJAMIN NEWLAND, President; N.F. MALOTT, Cashier. Directors: Benjamin Newland, Newton F. Malott, Washington C. DePauw, William M. Northcraft, Stern Younger, Jesse Mitchell, and William Duncan.
  • BRANCH AT VINCENNES. J.N. EASTHAM, President; J. F. BAYARD, Cashier. Directors: J.N. Eastham, John Ross, A.L. Roache, J.H. Hager, John Caldwell, Samuel Wise, and George D. Hay.
  • BRANCH AT TERRE HAUTE. JOHN P. USHER, President. Directors: John P. Usher, Thomas Dowling, Lewis M. Cook, Wm. E. McLean, W.R. McKeen, Albert Lange, and Austin M. Puett.[4]

In February 1857, the officers of the Branch at Madison were Jos. M. Moore, president; and Geo. D. Fitzhugh, cashier.[5] In October 1857, Winslow, Lanier & Co. of New York suspended. The Bank of the State and the old State Bank were deeply connected with them and they had been heavy stockholders in both institutions. They were said to also be the principal owners of the Madison branch of the State Bank of Indiana and had connections with the financial matters of Indiana perhaps more extensive than any other firm in the East.[6] Among the branches of the Bank of the State it was thought that only those at Jeffersonville, Laporte, Plymouth, Connersville, Bedford and Lima would suspend, although one or two of them might withstand the siege of brokers and specie-living bill holders.[7]

On January 28, 1858, Mr. Joseph M. Moore of Madison, Indiana, died in that city after an illness of four days. Mr. M. was president of the Branch of the State Bank of Indiana located at Madison and was a man highly esteemed in public and private life.[8] In March, W.G. Wharton, Sr., an old citizen of Madison and a gentleman of wealth and integrity was elected president pro tem of the Madison Branch of the Bank of the State. It was contemplated by Mr. James F.D. Lanier and the directory to secure the services of Mr. Shields of New Albany as the permanent president of the bank. The station had been tendered to him, but he had not yet accepted.[9]

On January 15, 1864, James M. Ray, cashier reported dangerous counterfeit $5 notes of the Bank of the State of Indiana. The face of Judge Morrison on the left end was indistinct and the background of that and of the head of Mr. Lanier as well as the center vignette was much darker than in the genuine. The signature of H. McCulloch was engraved. The back of the note was plausibly imitated. The notes seen were on the Madison Branch, but they may be filled and changed to other branches.[10]

On July 17, 1865, the National Branch Bank of Madison, capital $300,000, was authorized to commence business.[11]

On Sunday, July 23, 1882, Captain Nathan Powell, a millionaire and president of the National Branch Bank of Madison, died in the morning. He was born in Frederick County, Maryland on October 18, 1814, and married Mary F. Watts, a daughter of Captain Howard Watts in 1846. He left his wife and four sons, William, Frank, Edward, and Nathan, and two daughters, Mrs. W.P. Graham of Madison and Mrs. John P. Ernst of Covington, Kentucky.[12] In Augusth Mr. William H Powell was elected president of the National Branch Bank at Madison vice Nathan Powell, deceased. Mr. D.G. Phillips was cashier an would continue to manage the business of the bank.[13]

A Montreal swindle occurred in September 1883. The absconding produce man and forger, C.J. Dewey who victimized Molson's Bank in Montreal to the extent of $50,000, turned out to be the same man who committed forgeries upon the National Branch Bank of Madison, Indiana for more than $40,000 some years ago under the name of O.R. Halpert. He was recognized in Canada a few days before his absconding by John Roberts and John W. Verry of Madison and if he had remained just a few days longer he would have been arrested and extradited.[14] O.R. Halpert was president of Halpert's Miniature Business World at Madison, delivering practical business training since about 1875 to young and middle aged men desirous of becoming merchants, bankers, bookkeepers, and general businessmen.[15] 

On March 12, 1903, the Madison Safe Deposit and Trust Company, with a capital stock of $100,000, was incorporated by Frank L. Powell, E.E. Powell, J.W. Cornett, Joseph R. Colgate, John W. Thomas, Charles Fischer, Charles Cravens, Granville Johnson, Patrick Wade, W.H. Miller and W.H. Guthrie.[16]

In June 1904, Frank L. Powell of Madison was elected president of the Capital National Bank of Indianapolis, succeeding William F. Churchman who resigned due to his health. Orlando M. Packard who had been a vice president, resigned as a director and vice president and would engage in business elsewhere. Mr. Powell was one of the best-known bankers in Indiana and for 20 years had been with the National Branch Bank of Madison which his father, Nathan Powell founded. The Powell name was a potent one in Indiana banking. Frank Powell began as a messenger at his father's institution and worked his way up to the presidency. His bank was one of the few in the state where the surplus was larger than the capital stock and since Mr. Powell took the presidency the surplus had more than doubled while the dividend rate increased from 6 to 10%. During the stress of 1893, Mr. Powell's bank did not reduce the discount line of a single customer in Jefferson County. The institution occupied one of the old-fashioned banking structures with huge columns in front and was the same building it occupied when Madison was the commercial metropolis of Indiana and Indianapolis was still a village. Next door Mr. Powell constructed a modern banking building for the Madison Safe Deposit and Trust Co. Mr. Powell served a term as president of the Indiana Bankers' Association.[17]

In 1904, the National Branch Bank in Madison opened the Madison Safe Deposit and Trust Co. in order to provide certain types of loans which at that time could not be offered by national banks. In the early 1950s, because of the enactment of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, the bank's directors decided to give up the national charter and obtain a state charter. On Aug 2, 1954, the National Branch Bank merged with the Madison Safe Deposit and Trust Co. to become the Madison Bank and Trust Co.[18]

On January 15, 1909, stockholders elected the following directors: John B. Ross, John T. Schofield, William H. Miller, Harry W. Hargan, J. Wilbur Cornett, Edward E. Powell, and William H. Powell. The board re-elected William H. Powell, president; Edward E. Powell, vice president; and Edward J. Colgate, cashier.[19]

On Tuesday night, December 28, 1943, John W. Tevis, 82, widely-known southern Indiana banker died after a long illness. He had been president of the National Branch Bank and Madison Safe Deposit and Trust Company since 1916. A grandson his mother's side of John F. Cotton, the first white child born in southern Indiana, Mr. Tevis was a native of Brooksburg, Jefferson County. Active in Republican politics before becoming a banker, he was trustee of Milton Township. In 1892 he was elected clerk of the Jefferson Circuit Court and served two terms. He was credited with the promotion of Clifty Falls State Park, was a founder of King's Daughters Hospital, the former Madison Chautauqua Association, the Chamber of Commerce, of which he was a past president, aided promotion of the Madison-Milton (Kentucky) bridge over Ohio River. Mr. Tevis also served as a trustee of Hanover College and was affiliated with the Trow Milling Company and a paper mill in past years. He was a member of the Presbyterian Church and the Knights of Pythias and Red Men's lodges.[20]

In August 1953, H.L. Lyon, president of National Branch Bank of Madison, was named to the bank management committee of the state banking association.[21]

On July 16, 1954, an announcement was made of the merger of the National Branch Bank with the Madison Safe Deposit & Trust Company. The merger would become effective on August 2d with the new joint institution to be known as the Madison Bank & Trust Company operating under a state charter. Directors and officials of both banks would retain their posts with some changes in titles. The consolidated firm would move in the fall to a new building under construction on East Main Street.[22] The Branch Bank dated back to 1833 with construction of its building started that year. The original Branch Bank was one of 10 branches of the then Second State Bank and it was established to serve Jefferson, Jennings, Scott, Bartholomew and Jackson Counties. In 1855, the Second State Bank became the Third State Bank and Madison again was chosen a branch of the system. The Branch Bank was the successor to the original Farmers and Mechanics Bank founded in 1814, the first in Indiana.[23]

FDIC Bank History for the Madison Bank and Trust Company (FDIC #4399):

  • 04/14/1976 Changed Institution Name to First Bank of Madison.
  • 07/02/1984 Changed Institution Name to The Madison Bank and Trust Company.
  • 07/02/1984 Main Office moved to 213-215 East Main Street, Madison, IN 47250.
  • 07/02/1984 Acquired The Madison Bank and Trust Company (FDIC #13141) in Madison, IN.
  • 10/01/1989 Acquired Rising Sun State Bank (FDIC #13119) in Rising Sun, IN.
  • 08/26/2005 Merged and became part of MainSource Bank (FDIC #5766) in Greensburg, IN.
  • 04/01/2018 Merged and became part of First Financial Bank (FDIC #6600) in Cincinnati, OH.

Official Bank Title

1: The National Branch Bank of Madison, IN

Bank Note Types Issued

Series of 1875 $10 bank note
Series of 1875 $10 bank note with blue-stained paper and pen signatures of D.G. Phillips, Cashier and N. Powell, President. Courtesy of Lyn Knight Auctions, www.lynknight.com
1882 Brown Back $5 bank note
1882 Brown Back $5 bank note with pen signatures of W.H. Powell, Cashier and F.L. Powell, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com
1902 Date Back $10 bank note
1902 Date Back $10 bank note with pen signatures of E.J. Colgate, Cashier and Edward E. Powell, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com
1902 Plain Back $5 bank note
1902 Plain Back $5 bank note with stamped signatures of E.J. Colgate, Cashier and John W. Tevis, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com
1929 Type 2 $20 bank note
1929 Type 2 $20 bank note with printed signatures of Carl Bock, Cashier and John W. Tevis, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

A total of $3,497,460 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1865 and 1935. This consisted of a total of 460,214 notes (398,356 large size and 61,858 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 - 3300
Original Series 4x5 1 - 11475
Original Series 3x10-20 1 - 4300
Series 1875 4x5 1 - 820
Series 1875 3x10-20 1 - 2554
1882 Brown Back 4x5 1 - 14500
1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 5304
1902 Red Seal 4x5 1 - 4500
1902 Red Seal 3x10-20 1 - 2700
1902 Date Back 4x5 1 - 7000
1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 6800
1902 Plain Back 4x5 7001 - 29412
1902 Plain Back 3x10-20 6801 - 20724
1929 Type 1 6x5 1 - 4940
1929 Type 1 6x10 1 - 2734
1929 Type 1 6x20 1 - 724
1929 Type 2 5 1 - 6792
1929 Type 2 10 1 - 3892
1929 Type 2 20 1 - 786

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1865 - 1935):

Presidents:

Cashiers:

Other Known Bank Note Signers

  • No other known bank note signers for this bank

Bank Note History Links

Sources

  • Madison, IN, 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
  1. ↑ Wolka, Wendell, "Rare Banknotes, Banks, and Bankers of Indiana," Paper Money, No.66, Nov/Dec 1976, pp 264-271.
  2. ↑ Evansville Courier and Press, Evansville, IN, Wed., June 22, 1983.
  3. ↑ The Indianapolis News, Indianapolis, IN, Wed., Feb. 23, 1881.
  4. ↑ Weekly Indiana State Sentinel, Indianapolis, IN, Thu., Nov 8, 1855.
  5. ↑ Richmond Weekly Palladium, Richmond, IN, Thu., Feb. 19, 1857.
  6. ↑ The Weekly Vincennes Western Sun, Vincennes, IN, Sat., Oct. 24, 1857.
  7. ↑ Lafayette Weekly Courier, Lafayette, IN, Tue., Oct. 27, 1857.
  8. ↑ The Indiana Herald, Huntington, IN, Wed., Feb. 10, 1858.
  9. ↑ Journal and Courier, Lafayette, IN, Tue., Mar. 2, 1858.
  10. ↑ The Indianapolis Star, Indianapolis, IN, Sat., Jan. 16, 1864.
  11. ↑ The Western Sun, Vincennes, IN, Sat., July, 29, 1865.
  12. ↑ The Indianapolis News, Indianapolis, IN, Mon., July 24, 1882.
  13. ↑ The Indianapolis News, Indianapolis, IN, Thu, Aug. 3, 1882.
  14. ↑ San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco, CA, Sun., Sep. 30, 1883.
  15. ↑ Richmond Independent Telegram, Richmond, IN, Fri., Aug. 27, 1875.
  16. ↑ The Indianapolis Journal, Indianapolis, IN, Fri., Mar. 13, 1903.
  17. ↑ The Indianapolis Star, Indianapolis, IN, Mon., June 20, 1904.
  18. ↑ Evansville Courier and Press, Evansville, IN, Wed., June 22, 1983.
  19. ↑ The Indianapolis News, Indianapolis, IN, Fri., Jan. 15, 1909.
  20. ↑ The Indianapolis News, Indianapolis, IN, Thu., Dec. 30, 1943.
  21. ↑ The Dearborn County Register, Lawrenceburg, IN, Thu., Aug. 13, 1953.
  22. ↑ The Times, Hammond, IN, Sun., July 18, 1954.
  23. ↑ The Cincinnati Enquirer, Cincinnati, OH, Sat., July 1, 1954.
Retrieved from "https://banknotehistory.mywikis.wiki/w/index.php?title=National_Branch_Bank,_Madison,_IN_(Charter_1457)&oldid=69864"