Ninth National Bank, Philadelphia, PA (Charter 3371)

The Ninth National Bank Building located on Front and Norris Streets. Courtesy of Google Maps

Ninth National Bank, Philadelphia, PA (Chartered 1885 - Liquidated 1923)

Town History

Sketch of the Ninth National Bank of Philadelphia.

Philadelphia is located in Philadelphia County, in the southeast corner of Pennsylvania. It is currently the sixth-most-populous city in the United States and the most populous city in the state of Pennsylvania. It is also the second-most populous city in the Northeastern United States, behind New York City.

Philadelphia is one of the oldest municipalities in the United States. William Penn, an English Quaker, founded the city in 1682 to serve as capital of the Pennsylvania Colony. It grew on the steep banks of the Delaware River into a hub of international trade and monetary influence. The royal post-office was established in this city by Franklin. Mail would pass uninterrupted from Crown to Republic, the one royal department which did so. The Colonies used the old expresses and mail routes leading up to and through the revolution. Philadelphia played an instrumental role in the American Revolution as a meeting place for the Founding Fathers of the United States, who signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776 in Carpenters' Hall, and the Constitution at the Philadelphia Convention of 1787 in Independence Hall.

Philadelphia was the second Capitol after New York City during George Washington's presidency. On April 2, 1792, the United States Mint opened its doors here with David Rittenhouse, former treasurer of Pennsylvania, the first director. The American Philosophical Society was the first scientific society in the land and still meets in the hall Franklin secured for it. Former townships and boroughs of Bristol, Richmond, Kensington, Germantown, Manayunk, Northern Liberties, Southwark, to name a few, were consolidated into Philadelphia in 1854 which then occupied all of Philadelphia County.

During the National Bank Note Era (1863-1935), the population of Philadelphia was 674,022 in 1870, growing to 1,950,961 in 1930. Its highest population was 2,071,605 in 1950, and the current population is estimated at 1,584,064 (2019).

Philadelphia had 70 National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and 62 of those banks issued National Bank Notes. Philadelphia also had 27 Obsolete Banks that issued Obsolete Bank Notes during the Obsolete Bank Note Era (1782-1866).

Bank History

Advertisement from The Ninth Bank & Trust Co., Philadelphia announcing dividend payable to stockholders in 1929.

Organized July 31, 1885
Chartered August 1, 1885
Liquidated October 1, 1923
Succeeded by The Ninth Bank and Trust Company of Philadelphia

A stockholders meeting was held in June, 1885, at the American Hotel, chaired by John Wanamaker to discuss the new national bank to take the place of the Shackamaxon Bank in the northeastern section of the city. Application for incorporation had been made in Washington under the name of the "Mercantile National Bank" and the secretary, Charles H. Biles was instructed to forward an application under the new name, The Ninth National Bank. The stockholders for The Ninth National Bank elected the following Board of Directors: H.W. Butterworth, James E. Mitchell, Thomas M. Lowry, Joseph B. McKee, James Pollock, Joseph P. Murphy, Thomas S. Gay, John R. White, W.H. Arrott, James Hogg, John C. Roelofs, Phillip H. Horne, and John Dickey. The board met the following week and elected John Dewey as the first President and Charles H. Biles as the first Cashier.

The new Ninth National Bank Building opened for business on January 13, 1887 on Front Street below Norris. The façade was 36 feet in width, built of Indiana limestone, having a large semi-circular window surmounted by a carved cornice and sculptured pediment. Below the entrance was flanked by clustered columns supporting a small pediment on the frieze of which is inscribed the name of the building. A large fire and burglar proof Farrell vault was installed. Immediately to the rear is the directors' room, finished in cherry, with handsome wainscot and fireplace; above this is the dining hall. Special sanitary provisions were made, the building being thoroughly ventilated and heated by steam, electric bells connected the various rooms and all the modern improvements had been employed. In September, the officers were John Dickey, president; James E. Mitchell, vice president; Charles H. Biles, cashier. Directors were John Dickey, James E. Mitchell, John R. White, James Butterworth, Johmas S. Gay, James Pollock, Thomas M. Lewry, Joseph D. McKee, Philip H. Horn, John G. Carruth, Adolph Woll, Robert Pilling, William E. Montague. The bank had capital of $300,000 and Surplus of $25,000.

In 1920, the stockholders of The Ninth National Bank were advised they, if desired, may become shareholders of a new trust company by surrender of their certificates of bank stock, accepting in exchange a certificate for an equal number of shares of stock in what would become known as the Ninth Bank & Trust Co. Furthermore, any assenting shareholders also had to agree that they would not sell or otherwise dispose of their stock in one institution without at the same time disposing of the shares of the other to the same purchaser. This provision assured a continuance of the common ownership of the two institutions. At the time the Ninth National Bank had an authorized capital of $500,000 divided into 5000 shares of a par value of $100 each and the capital of the trust company was to be of the same capitalization. This was not an innovation conceived by the bankers of the Ninth National Bank, but one used by The National City Bank of New York, charter 345, which organized into the National City Trust and the Irving National Bank of New York. The First National Bank of Scranton was the first institution in Pennsylvania to use this plan. The federal laws that governed national banks prior to 1918 precluded a national bank from engaging in the functions of a trust company. The Act of September 26, 1918 authorized, with limitations, national banks to open trust departments and to act as trustee, executor, administrator, registrar of stocks and bonds, guardian of estates, assignee, receiver, committee of estates of lunatics, and in any other fiduciary capacity allowed under state law. This Act allowed national banks to compete on a level playing field with state institutions with a trust department. Many bankers chose to take advantage of the act by adding trust divisions and adding Trust to their national bank title, giving rise to hundreds of title changes across the country. The Ninth National Bank chose a different course.

The Ninth Bank & Trust Co. had the same officers and directors as the Ninth National Bank. The new trust company was located at the northeast corner of Allegheny and Kensington Avenues. The Ninth National Bank would liquidate just a few years later on October 1, 1923. Ira W. Barnes would retire as president of the Ninth Bank & Trust Co. in 1948, remaining as a director until its merger with the Philadelphia National Bank in 1951.

Official Bank Title(s)

1: The Ninth National Bank of Philadelphia, PA

Bank Note Types Issued

Series of 1882 $5 Brown Back Serial Number 1 with pen signatures of Charles H. Biles, Cashier and John Dickey, President. The paper has two continuous horizontal threads used as an anti-counterfeiting measure that was discontinued in the late 1880s. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

1902 Date Back $10 bank note with stamped signatures of John G. Sonneborn, Cashier and Ira W. Barnes, President. Courtesy of Adam Stroup

A total of $2,883,150 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1885 and 1923. This consisted of a total of 234,612 notes (234,612 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 - 1650
1882 Brown Back	3x10-20	1 - 9215
1902 Red Seal	3x10-20	1 - 3900
1902 Date Back	3x10-20	1 - 23400
1902 Plain Back	3x10-20	23401 - 43888

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Ninth National Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1885 - 1923):

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

Philadelphia, PA, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philadelphia,_Pennsylvania
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
Free Library of Philadelphia, Digital Collections, Ninth National Bank.
The Times, Philadelphia, PA, Fri., June 26, 1885.
The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, Wed., Jan. 12, 1887.
The Philadelphia Times, Philadelphia, PA, Thu., Sep. 15, 1887.
Evening Public Ledger, Philadelphia, PA, Thu., Apr. 1, 1920.
The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, Thu., Dec. 27, 1928, p. 19.
The Times-Tribune, Scranton, PA, Tue., Nov. 17, 1953.