National Metropolitan Bank/National Metropolitan Citizens Bank, Washington, DC (Charter 1069)

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The National Metropolitan Bank ca1909.[1]

N Metropolitan Bank/N Metropolitan Citizens Bank/N Metropolitan Bank, Washington, DC (Chartered 1865 - Open past 1935)

Town History

The National Metropolitan Bank located at 15th Street, NW, Washington, District of Columbia, ca2022.
The National Metropolitan Bank located at 15th Street, NW, Washington, District of Columbia, ca2022. Courtesy of Google Maps

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia, also known as just Washington or simply D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. It is located on the east bank of the Potomac River, which forms its southwestern and southern border with Virginia, and it shares a land border with Maryland on its other sides. The city was named for George Washington, a Founding Father and the first president of the United States, and the federal district is named after Columbia, a female personification of the nation. As the seat of the U.S. federal government and several international organizations, the city is an important world political capital. It is the eighth-most visited city in the U.S. as of 2019.

Washington, DC had 29 National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and 25 of those banks issued National Bank Notes.

Bank History

Bank of the Metropolis Obsolete $10 dated July 5th, 1844, Haxby DC-290 with pen signatures of Richard Smith, Cashier and John P. Van Ness, President. End panel designs with Liberty at left and an eagle at right and a large, central vignette of the United States Capitol as it appeared before its remodeling which included a much larger central dome.
Bank of the Metropolis Obsolete $10 dated July 5th, 1844, Haxby DC-290 with pen signatures of Richard Smith, Cashier and John P. Van Ness, President. End panel designs with Liberty at left and an eagle at right and a large, central vignette of the United States Capitol as it appeared before its remodeling which included a much larger central dome. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com
A stock certificate for the National Metropolitan Bank, dated August 9, 1897, signed by George H.B. White, Cashier and E.S. Parker, President.
A stock certificate for the National Metropolitan Bank, dated August 9, 1897, signed by George H.B. White, Cashier and E.S. Parker, President.  Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

The Bank of the Metropolis was organized January 3, 1814 and was looked upon as the successor of the Washington and Georgetown branch of the Bank of the United States. The latter had ceased to exist about the year 1811 through the failure of Congress to renew its charter, and Gen. John P. Van Ness who under it had been chairman of the board of its district branch, became the first president of the new bank. Mr. Van Ness came to Washington as a member of Congress from New York and was married in 1802 to the celebrated Marcia Burns whereupon he became a permanent resident of the District. He was president of the Bank of the Metropolis until his death in March 1846.

In January 1814, notice was given that subscriptions on the Bank of the Metropolis were 49,661 shares, being 24,661 shares more than the requisite number. By the articles of association, it was determined that 136 was the greatest number of shares to which any subscriber was entitled. Attendance was directed to the Davis's Hotel in the City of Washington from 10 o'clock until 4 o'clock on the 6th and 7th to issue receipts and return the excess money paid on the original subscriptions. Election of thirteen directors would be held on the 10th. The notice was published on behalf of the Commissioners, John P. Van Ness, Chairman.

In September 1814, the public buildings having been mostly destroyed, the various officers were locating themselves in private houses. President Monroe occupied Col. Taylor's large house which was formerly occupied by the French Minister; the Department of State occupied the house formerly occupied by Judge Duvall; the Treasury Department was fixed in the house formerly occupied by the British minister Foster; the War Office was in the building adjoining the Bank of the Metropolis. The Congressional Library was destroyed by the British without remorse to the valuable and irreplaceable collection of books.

In March 1846, John W. Maury, Esq., was unanimously elected president to succeed Gen. Van Ness, deceased.

In January 1853, a Washington paper commented "...for the people to be cursed with this spurious currency of shin-plasters is truly most intolerable and not to be endured." As things stood, there were few banks in the District worthy of the public's confidence. The following was given as the most correct list yet published:

  • Bank of Commerce, Georgetown; Hugh B. Sweeney, Cashier.
  • Bank of the Metropolis, Washington; John W. Maury, President; Richard Smith, Cashier.
  • Bank of Washington, Washington; Dr. William Gunton, President; Jas. Adams, Cashier.
  • Patriotic Bank, Washington; G.C. Grammer, President; C. Bestor, Cashier.
  • Exchange Bank, Washington; W. Seldon, President; W.C. Bestor, Cashier.

On May 24, 1863, Captain Thomas Carbery, died suddenly at his residence on Fifteenth Street, near the canal. Captain C. was a former mayor of the city and for a number of years the president of the Bank of the Metropolis. He was elected in February 1855 as the third president, succeeding John W. Maury who also was a former mayor of Washington. The Board of Trustees of the Bank of the Metropolis elected Robert P. Dunlap, Esq., of Montgomery County, Maryland, president of the bank in place of Mr. Carbery, Esq., deceased. George Lowry was elected president in September 1863. Lowry retired July 1865 and John B. Blake succeeded him.

A 1911 photo of the National Metropolitan Bank.
A 1911 photo of the National Metropolitan Bank.

On April 18, 1864, the Board of Trustees elected Moses Kelly, Esq., cashier of the bank, vice Richard Smith, deceased. Mr. Smith had been cashier of the Branch Bank of the United States in Washington. Mr. Kelly had experience as Chief Clerk of the Interior Department and in the Office of the Register of Wills.

In July 1866, the officers of the National Metropolitan Bank were John B. Blake, president, and Moses Kelly, cashier. The directors were Lewis Johnson, William Orme, Thos. Feran, George Parker, John Hitz, Francis S. Walsh, Wm. B. Todd, Thos. P. Morgan, and John Blake.

On Tuesday, January 12, 1904, the annual election was held at the National Metropolitan Bank at 613 15th Street northwest. The directors elected were John Joy Edson, George H. Harries, Henry Hart, E.S. Parker, James B. Wimer, John B. Larner, W.H. Moses, S.W. Woodward, and M.M. Parker.

On Saturday, October 1, 1904, officials of the National Metropolitan Bank and the Citizens' Bank of Washington signed a merger agreement which had been in negotiations for some time. The Metropolitan occupied the Citizens' building on 15th Street. Mr. George B. Appleton, a well-known Boston banker, headed the capitalists that brought about the consolidation. The new institution kept Charter 1069 with a title change to The National Metropolitan Citizens Bank of Washington. Mr. Appleton became president of the Citizens National Bank in 1904 when A.E. Appleyard acquired a controlling interest in two Washington banks, the Citizens and the Traders National. 

On January 31, 1905, the district attorney in Buffalo, New York, announced a number of "no bills" were handed down by the grand jury and that a secret indictment of Arthur E. Appleyard was among them.  He was alleged to have illegally gotten money from the German-American Bank of Buffalo.  Appleyard promoted trolley roads in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Western New York as the head of what was known as the "Appleyard syndicate."  He attempted to secure a chain of banks throughout the country and did succeed in controlling banks in Buffalo, Washington, and Pennsylvania. He and his associates bought control of the City Trust Company in Philadelphia in 1904, giving notes for the stock.  Almost immediately the syndicate secured a loan of $310,000 from the city Trust Company on stock of the German-American Bank of Buffalo and also made other loans.  These transactions caused the collapse of the trust company and the Buffalo bank also failed.  Appleyard, coming from Boston in 1904, acquired controlling interests in the Citizens National Bank and the Traders National Bank and put in his representatives as presidents of these institutions.  E. Southard Parker, president of the National Metropolitan Bank with which the Citizens bank was merged when Appleyard got out said Appleyard had a good business reputation as a successful broker in Boston.  He placed George B. Appleton as president of the Citizens National Bank and H.M. Jenks as president of the Traders National.  But Appleyard only retained his interest in these banks a few month when he sold out.  Appleton remained president of the merged banks for a short time.

In August 1905, George B. Appleton of Cambridge who was a clerk in the office of Arthur E. Appleyard, the street railway promoter contesting extradition to the State of New York where he was wanted on a charge of grand larceny from a Buffalo Bank, filed for bankruptcy. His liabilities were $292,677 and his assets were $50. According to the statement filed in the bankruptcy court, the liabilities were from sums due a large number of banks in Western Massachusetts, New York and Pennsylvania with promissory nots secured by stock in street railways. National Metropolitan Bank Building, located at 655 15th Street, NW, Washington, DC was built from 1905-1907.

A 1904 photo of the National Metropolitan Bank located at 613 15th Street, Northwest, Washington, District of Columbia.
A 1904 photo of the National Metropolitan Bank located at 613 15th Street, Northwest, Washington, District of Columbia.

On Tuesday, January 9, 1906, the directors elected were Woodbury Blair, George H. Harries, Charles Jacobsen, O.H. Perry Johnson, Thomas R. Jones, William S. Knox, John B. Larner, David Moore, John H. Moore, W.H. Moses, Allison Nailor, Jr., Myron M. Parker, Jackson H. Ralston, Hough Reilly, E. Francis Riggs, Cuno H. Rudolph, George Truesdell, John F. Wilkins, James B. Wimer, W.A. Wimsatt, S.W. Woodward, and E.S. Parker. The new member was O.H. Perry Johnson. The word "Citizen" was dropped from the title of the bank by vote of the stockholders.

In January 1957, President C.F. Jacobsen announced that all directors were re-elected. Re-elected directors were: Alvin L. Aubinoe, Louis D. Bliss, D. William Brosnan, T.D. Carson, Maj. Gen. Glen E. Edgerton, William J. Hughes, Jr., John B. Hyde, C.F. Jacobsen, James M. Johnston, Jr., C. Bayne Marbury, Felix Morley, Frank F. Nesbit, James O’Donnell, C.F.R. Ogilby, Landra B. Platt, Donald D. Shepard, and H.C. Sheridan, Russell E. Singer, A.J. Somerville, James C. Wilkes and W.K. Wimsatt. 

In February 1957, Chris Jacobson, president of the National Metropolitan Bank which served the Washington Senators replaced H. Gabriel Murphy who no longer wanted any part of the baseball club.  It was the National Metropolitan Bank that loaned Clark Griffith the $87,000 to enable him to become president of the Senators.
American Security and Trust Company ca1909.[2]

In 1958, the number of Washington's banks shrank to 13 from 17 while total resources, deposits and earnings rose to new highs. During the year American Security & Trust Co. acquired the National Metropolitan Bank on May 20th; Riggs National merged with the Lincoln National Bank on November 10th; and Union Trust Co. acquired the banking assets and business of Munsey Trust Co. on December 26th. American Security reported year end total assets of $320,704,946, up from $224,866,889 at the end of 1957. American Security and Trust Co. was located at 15th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, NE.

Official Bank Titles

1: The National Metropolitan Bank of Washington, DC

2: The National Metropolitan Citizens Bank of Washington, DC (11/7/1904)

3: The National Metropolitan Bank of Washington, DC (1/10/1906)

Bank Note Types Issued

Original Series $20 bank note with pen signatures of Moses Kelly, Cashier and John B. Blake, President.
Original Series $20 bank note with pen signatures of Moses Kelly, Cashier and John B. Blake, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com
1882 Brown Back $10 bank note with SN 1A and pen signatures of George H.B. White, Cashier and J.W. Thompson, President.
1882 Brown Back $10 bank note with SN 1A and pen signatures of George H.B. White, Cashier and J.W. Thompson, President. Courtesy of the NBNCensus.com
1902 Red Seal $5 bank note with printed signatures of J. Gales Moore, Cashier and E.S. Parker, President.
1902 Red Seal $5 bank note with printed signatures of J. Gales Moore, Cashier and E.S. Parker, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com
1902 Date Back $10 bank note with printed signatures of G.O. Walson, Cashier and George W. White, President.
1902 Date Back $10 bank note with printed signatures of G.O. Walson, Cashier and George W. White, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com
1929 Type 1 $20 bank note with SN C000001A and printed signatures of C.F. Jacobsen, Cashier and George W. White, President.
1929 Type 1 $20 bank note with SN C000001A and printed signatures of C.F. Jacobsen, Cashier and George W. White, President. Courtesy of the NBNCensus.com

A total of $14,934,380 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1865 and 1935. This consisted of a total of 1,384,046 notes (1,299,164 large size and 84,882 small size notes).

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

Series/Type Sheet/Denoms Serial#s Sheet Comments
1: Original Series 4x5 1 - 6500
1: Original Series 3x10-20 1 - 6662
1: Original Series 50-100 1 - 1516
1: Series 1875 4x5 1 - 500
1: Series 1875 3x10-20 1 - 450
1: Series 1875 50-100 1 - 52
1: 1882 Brown Back 4x5 1 - 21465
1: 1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 12857
2: 1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 2000
2: 1902 Red Seal 4x5 1 - 9100
2: 1902 Red Seal 3x10-20 1 - 6054
3: 1902 Red Seal 4x5 1 - 27000
3: 1902 Red Seal 3x10-20 1 - 14100
3: 1902 Date Back 4x5 1 - 20000
3: 1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 71200
3: 1902 Plain Back 3x10-20 71201 - 197319
3: 1929 Type 1 6x10 1 - 11031
3: 1929 Type 1 6x20 1 - 3116

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1865 - 1936):

Presidents:

Cashiers:

Other Known Bank Note Signers

  • No other known bank note signers for this bank

Bank Note History Links

Sources

  • 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
  • Alexandria Gazette, Alexandria, VA, Sat., Jan. 8, 1814.
  • Richmond Enquirer, Richmond, VA, Wed., Sep. 14, 1814.
  • Alexandria Gazette, Alexandria, VA, Fri., Mar. 13, 1846.
  • Evening Star, Washington, DC, Sat., Jan. 8, 1853.
  • Evening Star, Washington, DC, Mon., May 25, 1863.
  • Evening Star, Washington, DC, Wed., June 3, 1863.
  • Evening Star, Washington, DC, Tue., Apr. 19, 1864.
  • Evening Star, Washington, DC, Mon., July 16, 1866.
  • Evening Star, Washington, DC, Tue., Jan. 12, 1904.
  • Alexandria Gazette, Alexandria, VA, Mon., Oct. 3, 1904.
  • The Washington Times, Washington, DC, Wed., Oct. 12, 1904.
  • The Washington Post, Washington, DC, Wed., Feb. 1, 1905.
  • The Washington Post, Washington, DC, Fri., Aug. 18, 1905.
  • The Washington Post, Washington, DC, Fri., June 14, 1907.
  • Evening Star, Washington, DC, Tue., Jan. 9, 1906.
  • The Washington Times, Washington, DC, Sun., Dec. 30, 1906.
  • The Washington Times, Washington, DC, Tue., Apr. 25, 1911.
  • Evening Star, Washington, DC, Tue., Jan. 8, 1957.
  • The Morning News, Wilmington, DE, Fri., Feb. 1, 1957.
  • Evening Star, Washington, DC, Sun., Jan. 4, 1959.
  • Evening Star, Washington, DC, Sun., Jan. 25, 1959.
  1. ↑ The Bankers' Magazine, Vol. 78, Jan. 1909-June 1909, p. 667.
  2. ↑ The Bankers' Magazine, Vol. 78, Jan. 1909-June 1909, p. 673.
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