Norway National Bank, Norway, ME (Charter 1956)
Norway National Bank, Norway, ME (Chartered 1872 - Liquidated 1931)
Town History
Norway is a town in Oxford County, Maine, United States. The population was 5,077 at the 2020 census. It is home to Lake Pennesseewassee, a recreation area.
In 1786, Joseph Stevens, George Leslie, Amos Hobbs, Jeremiah Hobbs, Jonas Stevens, and Nathaniel Stevens began clearing land and building homes. They intended to not only provide for their families, but also attract new settlers to their small community. Many of the early settlers had fought in the Revolutionary War, including Phineas Whitney, a veteran of the Battle of Bunker Hill.
By 1789, a sawmill and gristmill were established, the first road was built in 1796, and the town of Norway was officially incorporated on March 9, 1797. Before incorporation, the township adopted the name Rustfield, to recognize the contributions of prominent landowner Henry Rust of Salem, Massachusetts, and the community once petitioned the Massachusetts General Court to be named Norage, meaning "falls" in the native peoples' language. According to A Gazetteer of the State of Maine, the name of Norway was finally chosen to honor persons from Norway, in Scandinavia.
Founded in 1850, the C. B. Cummings & Son Company mass-produced wooden components like dowels in downtown Norway. In 2001, after domestic furniture manufacturers were unable to compete with production costs in China, the company closed and auctioned their factory. Similarly, after K2 Sports bought Tubbs Snowshoe Company in 2014, production moved from Vermont to Guangzhou, China.
In 1997, the New Balance Shoe Company built a manufacturing facility in Norway where production continues today.
Norway had two National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and both of those banks issued National Bank Notes.
Bank History
- Organized March 23, 1872
- Chartered April 10, 1872
- Liquidated July 25, 1931
- Absorbed by Casco Mercantile Trust Company, Portland
On Tuesday, January 14, 1930, the stockholders re-elected the the same board of directors as follows: Henry B. Foster, Herbert F. Andrews, Arthur W. Easton, Leroy Spilled, Bertrand G. McIntire, Charles G. Blake, all of Norway; Walter L. Gray, South Paris; A.B. Caswell, Harrison; and Fred L. Edwards, Bethel. In organizing the board elected H.B. Foster, president; Walter L. Gray and Charles G. Blake, vice presidents.
In June 1931, Leonard R. Timberlake, President of the Casco Mercantile Trust Company of Portland announced that, subject to ratification by stockholders, the Norway National Bank and the Paris Trust Company of South Paris would consolidate with the Portland Institution. Contracts for the transaction were prepared and would be submitted to stockholders of the three banking concerns. The two Oxford county banks had combined assets of $3 million.
The Paris Trust Company operated a branch at Buckfield. The Paris Trust Co. of South Paris began business in 1908 in Pythian hall block and in 1924 moved to new quarters in the Association Block. Perley F. Ripley was the first president of the bank and had continued in that office over the 23 years that it had been in business. Walter L. Gray was first vice president and the second vice president was Henry H. Hastings of Bethel. Dr. D.M. Stewart was clerk and secretary, Irving O. Barrows was treasurer and had held that office since incorporation. The Buckfield branch of the trust company opened in 1912. James Emery of that town was manager succeeding Morton T. Garland the first to hold that office. The Trust Co. was a member of the Bankers Electric Protective Association and was protected by the latest devices in vault alarms.
The Norway National bank opened its doors to the public April 15, 1872 with Sumner Burnham as its first president and Arthur E Dennison, cashier. On January 1, 1875, Howard D Smith was elected cashier on the resignation of Mr. Dennison and for 40 years held that position. He saw the bank grow from a small institution to one with a very large business. In 1919, Mr. Smith resigned as cashier and was elected to the presidency. This office he held until 1924 when he resigned after half a century with the institution and Henry B. Foster was elected president. In 1906, Fred E. Smith, son of H.D. Smith, was graduated from Bowdoin and in the fall began his connection with the bank. In 1911 he was elected cashier and held that office until the merger.
In the early days the bank was located in what was known as the Freeland Howe music store which was 100 years old in 1930. Later they had offices in the Opera House block which was destroyed by fire in 1894 and a new one rebuilt the same year. Three years earlier they erected a new two story brick building on the corner of Main and Cottage Streets, the bank occupying the first floor and the telephone company the second. Other officers besides those mentioned included Percy Y. Fogg, assistant cashier. According to the last statements the Norway National Bank had capital stock of $50,000, surplus and profits of $117,450 and total deposits of $1,138,000. The Paris Trust Co. had capital stock of $50,000, surplus and profits of $74,820 and deposits of $1,045,000.
Official Bank Title(s)
1: The Norway National Bank, Norway, ME
Bank Note Types Issued
A total of $1,103,020 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1872 and 1931. This consisted of a total of 126,068 notes (120,812 large size and 5,256 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 - 1000 Original Series 4x5 1 - 3800 Original Series 3x10-20 1 - 800 Original Series 50-100 1 - 60 Series 1875 3x10-20 1 - 3431 1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 3540 1882 Date Back 4x5 1 - 1610 1882 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 815 1902 Date Back 4x5 1 - 1775 1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 1360 1902 Plain Back 4x5 1776 - 9045 1902 Plain Back 3x10-20 1361 - 6132 1929 Type 1 6x10 1 - 685 1929 Type 1 6x20 1 - 191
Bank Presidents and Cashiers
Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1872 - 1931):
Presidents:
- Sumner Burnham, 1872-1877
- William Frost, 2d., 1878-1881
- Hon. Henry M. Bearce, 1882-1894
- Charles Newell Tubbs, 1895-1918
- Howard Daniel Smith, 1919-1924
- Henry B. Foster, 1925-1930
Cashiers:
Other Known Bank Note Signers
- No other known bank note signers for this bank
Bank Note History Links
Sources
- Norway, ME, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norway,_Maine
- 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
- Portland Press Herald, Portland, ME, Sat., Jan. 18, 1930.
- The Lewiston Daily Sun, Lewiston, ME, Wed., June 17, 1931.