Niagara County National Bank, Lockport, NY (Charter 639)

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Postcard of the Niagara County National Bank of Lockport, New York, ca1920s.
Postcard of the Niagara County National Bank of Lockport, New York, ca1920s. Courtesy of Jake Jacobs

Niagara County NB/Niagara County NB & Trust Co., Lockport, NY (Chartered 1864 - Open past 1935)

Town History

The Niagara County National Bank located at the Corner of Main and Pine Streets, Lockport, New York, ca2022.
The Niagara County National Bank located at the Corner of Main and Pine Streets, Lockport, New York, ca2022. Courtesy of Google Maps
Photo of the clock located at the Niagara County National Bank. Courtesy of Jake Jacobs, 2023
Photo of the clock located at the Niagara County National Bank. Courtesy of Jake Jacobs, 2023

Lockport is both a city and the town that surrounds it in Niagara County, New York. The city is the Niagara County seat, with a population of 21,165 according to 2010 census. Its name derives from a set of Erie Canal locks (Lock Numbers 34 and 35) within the city that were built to allow canal barges to traverse the 60-foot natural drop of the Niagara Escarpment.

The New York State Legislature authorized the Erie Canal's construction in April 1816. The route proposed by surveyors was to traverse an area in central Niagara County, New York, which was then "uncivilized." At the time, the nearest settlers were in nearby Cold Springs, New York. Following the announcement, land speculators began to buy large plots along and near the proposed route of the canal. By December 1820, when the exact location of the step locks had been determined, the area that would become Lockport was owned by only fifteen men, many of whom were Quakers. The canal reached Lockport in 1824, but the Flight of Five Locks were not completed until 1825. By 1829, Lockport was an established village. The community was centered on the locks, and consisted mainly of immigrant Scottish and Irish canal workers brought in as labor. The workers remained in Lockport after the completion of the locks, giving the city a heavy Celtic influence still discernible today, especially in the Lowertown and North Lockport neighborhoods.

The city of Lockport was incorporated in 1865. The Erie Canal was supplanted by the larger New York State Barge Canal in 1918, and the famous south "Flight of Five" locks was replaced by two much larger locks E34 and E35. The north "Flight of Five" lock chambers still remain as a spill way.

Lockport had three National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and all three of those banks issued National Bank Notes.

Bank History

Niagara County Bank, Haxby NY-1255, Obsolete $3 Proof dated July 1st, 1856.  A Danforth, Wright & Co. color tinted proof on original card. The Durand patented geometric features are numerous and the deep red tint provides a superb contrast with the other printing and its curved title. The only vignette is the "Artisan" at center.
Niagara County Bank, Haxby NY-1255, Obsolete $3 Proof, dated July 1st, 1856.  A Danforth, Wright & Co. color tinted proof on original card. The Durand patented geometric features are numerous and the deep red tint provides a superb contrast with the other printing and its curved title. The only vignette is the "Artisan" at center. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com
  • Organized December 6, 1864
  • Chartered December 21, 1864
  • Succeeded Niagara County Bank
  • Bank was Open past 1935
  • Merged with Marine Trust Company April 1951

In April 1856, the Lockport Courier announced the formation of a new bank in that village to be called the Niagara County Bank with a capital of $200,000, all of which had been subscribed. The following gentlemen were chosen as directors: Washington Hunt, George W. Rogers, W.J. Daniels, T.T. Flagler, Daniel Van Valkenberg, Timothy Baker, Jr., W.P. Daniels, W.J. Daniels was designated as the president, and Wm. Rogers, cashier.

On September 4, 1857, W.J. Daniels, President of the Niagara County Bank, Lockport, was robbed in the Central Railroad cars of a pocket-book containing drafts in the amount of $30,000, mostly on business firms of Albany and New York. One was a sight draft on the Bank of the Capital, Albany, for $2,200 or $2,500. Payment was stopped. It was supposed that Mr. Daniels was followed by thieves all the way from home. That report turned out to be incorrect as W.J. Daniels thought he had been robbed, but later he found it, the contents all safe.

On September 2, 1862, at a meeting of the directors, James R. Compton was elected cashier in place of S.R. Daniels, resigned.

On January 8, 1884, at the annual meeting of the shareholders, Thomas T. Flagler, Timothy E. Ellsworth, Thos. N. Van Valkenburgh, Hopkins C. Pomroy, Charles M. Van Valkenburgh, John H. Buck, and James Jackson, Jr., were elected directors for the ensuing year. At a subsequent meeting of the board of directors, the following officers were chosen: Thomas T. Flagler, president; Timothy E. Ellsworth, vice president; and James R. Compton, cashier.

A 1951  advertisement for The Marine Trust Company of Western New York.  The map shows the locations of branches including the six that merged in 1951 with the Marine Trust Co. of Buffalo: Lockport, N. Tonawanda, Tonawanda, Buffalo, Medina and Albion.
A 1951  advertisement for The Marine Trust Company of Western New York.  The map shows the locations of branches including the six that merged in 1951 with the Marine Trust Co. of Buffalo: Lockport, N. Tonawanda, Tonawanda, Buffalo, Medina and Albion.

In May 1918, work commenced by Hoggson Brothers on the new bank building The bank had capital of 4100,000 and surplus and profits of $246,000. The officers were C.M. Van Valkenburgh, president; C.G. Sutliff, vice president; and John T. Symes, cashier. The magnificent new banking home of the Niagara County National Bank opened for business and public inspection on Wednesday, May 14, 1919. The structure was erected decorated, furnished and equipped by Hoggson Brothers, the New York and Chicago bank planning specialists. A combination of marble, bronze, effective lighting arrangements and decorations produced a truly worthwhile home for the bank and its rapidly increasing business. The building was located at Main and Pine Streets where its former home stood for many years. By acquiring the lot adjoining the new quarter were almost doubled in size, having a frontage of 43 feet on Main and depth of 80 feet on Pine. Indiana limestone and gray granite were used in construction. The main façade had a portico extending the full height of the structure with four massive columns of the Roman-Doric order supporting a richly molded cornice.

On February 21, 1928, the bank received permission from the Treasury Department to change its name to the Niagara County National Bank and Trust Company.

In April 1951, six area banks joined Marine Trust Company to form The Marine Trust Company of Western New York. The Marine Trust Company of Buffalo completed mergers with the Power City Trust Company of Niagara Falls, The Niagara County National Bank and Trust Company of Lockport, the First Trust Company of Tonawanda, the State Trust Company of North Tonawanda, the Marine Midland Trust Company of Albion and Medina Trust Company. With 51 offices and more than a half billion dollars in total resources, the bank continued to keep pace with the substantial development of Western New York.

On Saturday, April 19, 1969, services were held at Ruskin, Florida for George W. Eaton, 68, a retired bank official and a former civic leader of Lockport. Burial was in Bonaventure Cemetery Savannah, Georgia. Mr. Eaton, a retired senior vice president and supervisor of the Midland Trust Co. of New York died in a hospital Thursday night. He had lived in Florida since his retirement June 1, 1965. A native of Ashville, North Carolina, he joined the staff of the former Niagara County National Bank & Trust Co. in 1930 and served as vice president until 1950 when he became president. The bank merged with the Marine Trust Co. in 1951 and Mr. Eaton was named a Marine Trust Co. vice president. He served as regional supervisor and was elected senior vice president of the bank in 1963. He was a past president of the Erie-Niagara County Bankers' Association and of the Buffalo Chapter Robert Morris Associates.

Official Bank Title(s)

1: The Niagara County National Bank, Lockport, NY

2: Niagara County National Bank and Trust Company (2/13/1928), Lockport, NY

Bank Note Types Issued

Original Series $2 bank note with pen signatures of J.R. Compton, Cashier and T.T. Flagler, President.
Original Series $2 bank note with pen signatures of J.R. Compton, Cashier and T.T. Flagler, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com
1882 Brown Back $5 bank note with pen signatures of J.R. Compton, Cashier and Ransom Scott, President.
1882 Brown Back $5 bank note with pen signatures of J.R. Compton, Cashier and Ransom Scott, President. Courtesy of Lyn Knight Auctions, www.lynknight.com
1902 Plain Back $20 bank note with printed signatures of K.W. Strauss, Cashier and John T. Symes, President.
1902 Plain Back $20 bank note with printed signatures of K.W. Strauss, Cashier and John T. Symes, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com
1929 Type 1 $20 bank note with printed signatures of K.W. Strauss, Cashier and John T. Symes, President.
1929 Type 1 $20 bank note with printed signatures of K.W. Strauss, Cashier and John T. Symes, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com
1929 Type 2 $10 bank note with printed signatures of G.W. Eaton, Cashier and John T. Symes, President.
1929 Type 2 $10 bank note with printed signatures of G.W. Eaton, Cashier and John T. Symes, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

A total of $7,927,940 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1864 and 1935. This consisted of a total of 683,490 notes (497,084 large size and 186,406 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 3x1-2 1 - 2820
1: Original Series 4x5 1 - 5350
1: Original Series 3x10-20 1 - 1400
1: Original Series 50-100 1 - 200
1: Series 1875 4x5 1 - 3750
1: Series 1875 3x10-20 1 - 1485
1: Series 1875 50-100 1 - 60
1: 1882 Brown Back 4x5 1 - 7000
1: 1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 9427
1: 1902 Red Seal 3x10-20 1 - 6600
1: 1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 14600
1: 1902 Plain Back 3x10-20 14601 - 74670
2: 1902 Plain Back 3x10-20 1 - 11639
2: 1929 Type 1 6x10 1 - 22794
2: 1929 Type 1 6x20 1 - 6922
2: 1929 Type 2 10 1 - 6869
2: 1929 Type 2 20 1 - 1241

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1864 - 1936):

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

  • Lockport, 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://spmc.org/bank-note-history-project
  • The Buffalo, Commercial, Buffalo, NY, Tue., Apr. 29, 1856.
  • The Buffalo Daily Republic, Buffalo, NY, Fri., Sep. 4, 1857.
  • Buffalo Courier, Buffalo, NY, Sat., Sep. 5, 1857.
  • The Buffalo Daily Republic, Buffalo, NY, Wed., Sep. 3, 1862.
  • The Buffalo Commercial, Buffalo, NY, Fri., Jan. 11, 1884.
  • Democrat and Chronicle, Rochester, NY, Fri., May 31, 1918.
  • The Buffalo Enquirer, Buffalo, NY, Mon., May 12, 1919.
  • The Buffalo News, Buffalo, NY, Tue., May 13, 1919.
  • The Buffalo News, Buffalo, NY, Tue., Feb. 21, 1928.
  • The Buffalo News, Buffalo, NY, Mon., Apr. 30, 1951.
  • The Buffalo News, Buffalo, NY, Sat., Apr. 19, 1969.
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