Penn's Grove National Bank, Penn's Grove, NJ (Charter 5387)

Postcard of the Penn's Grove National Bank and Trust Company, ca1920s. Courtesy of Adam Stroup

Penn's Grove National Bank/Penn's Grove NB & TC, Penn's Grove, NJ (Chartered 1900 - Closed (Merger) 1991)

Town History

The old Penn's Grove National Bank located on West Main and Oak Streets, ca2020. Courtesy of Google Maps

Penns Grove is a borough in Salem County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 5,147. In 1900, the population was 1,826, peaking at 6,669 in 1950.

The area was for a long time primarily agricultural. Penns Grove was incorporated as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 8, 1894, from portions of Upper Penns Neck Township (now Carneys Point Township), based on the results of a referendum held two days earlier. It began to industrialize around this time. The borough's name comes from William Penn.

In the early 20th century, many Italian immigrants from Valle San Giovanni and the surrounding southern province of Teramo came to work at the local E.I. DuPont de Nemours plant in Carneys Point. Many settled on Pitman Street in Penns Grove. In 1925, the Italian community arranged to commission a copy of the statue of the Madonna and Child from the Chiesa della Madonna delle Grazie in Teramo, and had it installed in the Saint James Roman Catholic Church in Penns Grove.

Penn's Grove had one National Bank chartered during the Bank Note Era, and it issued National Bank Notes.

Bank History

Organized May 22, 1900
Chartered June 1, 1900
Bank was Open past 1935
For Bank History after 1935 see FDIC Bank History website
Merged into First National Bank of Toms River, NJ, May 2, 1991

The number of new national banks organized in the whole country during the past year was 528, of which eleven were New Jersey banks [based on the Government's fiscal year which began in June 1900, ending May 1901]. The total increase of capital was $28,443,600. The capital added from New Jersey's new national banks was as follows: First National Bank of High Bridge, $30,000; First National of Belmar, $25,000; Penn's Grove National, $25,000; Ocean Grove National, $25,000; Carlstadt National, $30,000; Second National of Phillipsburg, $100,000; First National of Blairstown, $25,000; Ocean County National of Point Pleasant Beach, $50,000; First National of Pennington, $25,000; First National of Spring Lake, $25,000; First National of Cape May, $25,000 for a total of $385,000.

In 1900, John A. Danby and Preston Lee, both of Wilmington, went to Penn's Grove and started Penn's Grove National Bank with a few residents as stockholders and directors. Mr. Danby was a directors of this bank for about 10 years and it was due largely to his wise financiering and advice that the bank was successful. While a director, he would travel to Penn's Grove from Wilmington, where he was cashier and later president of the Union National Bank, almost weekly to attend the meetings of the directors.

In January 1925, the directors elected were Thomas E. Hunt, Dr. Newton H. Barnhart, Joseph S. Flanigan, Robinson F. Willis, and Hildrith D. Turner. The officers chosen were Dr. Newton H Barnart, president, Joseph S. Flanigan, vice president; and J. Milton Featherer, cashier.

On February 2, 1934, four men stole $130,000 from two bank employees as they were entering the Penn's Grove National Bank and Trust Company with the money in three packages and a mall bag. The cash was to be used to meet the demands of the employees of E.I. du Pont De Nemours and Company. The four men escaped in a maroon colored sedan with stolen license tags on it. Later the car in which the robbers fled was found on the Auburn-Penns Grove road about three miles east of Penns Grove. The bank gong and fire siren were sounded and within five minutes fifty automobiles carrying residents of the town and vicinity started in search of the robbers. The money was in bills of different small denominations sent by the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank to Penns Grove the previous night. Shortly before 9 AM Harold Anderson, bank teller, and W.H. Waddington, bank runner, went to the post office and obtained the money. As they reached the sidewalk in front of the bank an automobile drove up and three men, all with pistols, got out while a fourth man stayed at the wheel of the car. The bags were seized and tossed into the back of the car, which quickly sped away. The license tags of the robber's car were stolen two days earlier in Camden from the car of Mrs. Bertha Jones while it was parked in front of her home. The holdup was one of the biggest in the history of this section. Descriptions of only two of the men were obtained. One wore a black leather jacket with zipper fastening. The other wore a dark gray overcoat with a zipper-fastened jacket beneath.

Shortly after the hold-up a witness told police he saw three men of suspicious appearance parked in a dark blue automobile outside the bank at different times for two days. The Delaware River bridge between Camden and Philadelphia was immediately guarded at both ends and all river landing places were put under guard. The first state police report said that $150,000 was taken, but a quick check with the Federal Reserve Bank in Philadelphia and with the DuPont Company in Wilmington indicated the amount was $130,000. Because the money taken was in mail sacks, it appeared likely that Federal officials would join the hunt. Penns Grove was about 25 miles south of Philadelphia and opposite Wilmington Delaware.

The serial numbers were known for $95,000 of the stolen currency:  $25,000 in tens numbered from C20653501A - C20656000A and $70,000 in twenties numbered from C07412501A to C07416000A.

On February 5th, three men and one woman were arrested by Camden, NJ police and held on suspicions of having participated in the payroll holdup. Two suitcases containing $35,000 of the loot were found in the house occupied by the suspects. They were John Farley, New York City; Charles Kent, Canton, Ohio; Harry Greenberg, Philadelphia; and Greenberg's wife, Rose.

On March 2d, Indictments were presented against John Fodale, 27, alias Farley, of Detroit, Michigan and Carol Johnson, 45, alias Charles Kent of Canton, Ohio. Harry Greenberg, 29, and his wife, Rosa, 27, of Philadelphia were also under arrest and released on bail of $10,000 and $5,000, respectively.

On March 29, Fodale and Kent were sentenced to terms of from 14 to 15 years in New Jersey State Prison by Judge J. Forman Sinnickson in the Salem County Criminal Court.

On August 31st, Elmer E. Martin, an alias for Willard Williams identified by fingerprints as an escaped Pennsylvania convict, was arrested by Warren, Ohio police on an unconnected shooting. He had a copper box soldered shut hidden in a wall that contained $16,000 from the Penns Grove holdup. On October 21st, facing trial for murder, Elmer E. Martin escaped from the Warren County jail. He made his escape with the aid of a smuggled pistol.

In January 1936, the directors were Dr. Newton H. Barnart, Joseph S. Flanigan, Thomas Hunt, R.W. Kidd, and W.S. Leap. Dr. Barnart was president and Milton Featherer, cashier.

On February 14, 1936, John Fodale's conviction was sustained by the State Supreme Court in Camden, New Jersey. While Charles Kent testified Fodale was asleep in a rooming house at the time of the robbery, the Supreme Court held that the trial jury was privileged to discount the story.

On January 9, 1940, former mayor, Robert W. Kidd was elected president. He was also the postmaster and previously served as sheriff and county detective. The bank had gone without a president since the death of Dr. Barnart. Wilbert S. Leap was re-elected vice president and J. Milton Featherer cashier. The directors were Kidd, Leap, Featherer, Thomas E. Hunt, and Joseph S. Flanigan.

On May 26, 1950, an open house party helped the Penn's Grove National Bank and Trust Company celebrate its fiftieth anniversary. Constructed at a cost of $150,000 in 1928-1929, the bank at the corner of West Main and Oak streets was the third structure used by the organization since formation in 1900. The earliest quarters were in the harness shop of Joseph C. Robbins followed by the original bank building which later served the community's needs as the Penns Grove Public Library. Cashier J. Milton Featherer was an employee since 1926. He credited John H. Danby, a well-known Wilmington banker with promoting and organizing the bank movement along with the late Joseph D. Whitacker, a sea captain and borough resident. Mr. Featherer listed the first board as being Joseph D. Whitacker, David D. Leap, John H. Danby, Joseph G. French and Thomas E. Hunt. The board in 1950 was composed of Robert W. Kidd, W.S. Leap, vice president; Joseph S. Flanigan, Dr. Charles L. Fleming, and J. Milton Featherer.

Official Bank Title(s)

1: The Penn's Grove National Bank, Penn's Grove, NJ

2: The Penn's Grove National Bank and Trust Company (6/5/1928), Penn's Grove, NJ

Bank Note Types Issued

1882 Brown Back $20 bank note with pen signatures of John Hare, Jr., Cashier and J.D. Whitaker, President. Courtesy of Lyn Knight Auctions, www.lynknight.com

1902 Plain Back $10 bank note with stamped signatures of J. Milton Featherer, Cashier and J.S. Flanigan, Vice President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

1929 Type 1 $20 bank note with printed signatures of J. Milton Featherer, Cashier and N.H. Barnart, President. Courtesy of Lyn Knight Auctions, www.lynknight.com

A total of $653,520 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1900 and 1991. This consisted of a total of 53,138 notes (37,800 large size and 15,338 small size notes).

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

Series/Type	Sheet/Denoms	Serial#s	Sheet Comments
1: 1882 Brown Back	3x10-20	1 - 1900
1: 1882 Date Back	3x10-20	1 - 2440
1: 1882 Value Back	3x10-20	2441 - 3797
1: 1902 Plain Back	3x10-20	1 - 3428
2: 1902 Plain Back	3x10-20	1 - 325
2: 1929 Type 1	6x10	1 - 864
2: 1929 Type 1	6x20	1 - 200
2: 1929 Type 2	10	1 - 7390
2: 1929 Type 2	20	1 - 1564

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1900 - 1991):

Presidents:

Joseph D. Whitaker, 1900-1910
Dr. Newton H. Barnart, 1911-1935

Cashiers:

Other Bank Note Signers

Joseph S. Flanigan signed notes as Vice President.
There are currently no known Assistant Cashier bank note signers for this bank.

Wiki Links

Sources

Penn's Grove, NJ, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penns_Grove,_New_Jersey
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
Courier-Post, Camden, NJ, Wed., June 5, 1901.
The News Journal, Wilmington, DE, Thu., Aug. 15, 1912.
The Morning Post, Camden, NJ, Mon., Jan. 19, 1925.
The Central New Jersey Home News, New Brunswick, NJ, Fri., Feb. 2, 1934.
The Central New Jersey Home News, New Brunswick, NJ, Sat., Feb. 3, 1934.
Asbury Park Press, NJ, Mon., Feb. 5, 1934.
Courier-Post, Camden, NJ, Fri., Mar. 2, 1934.
The Morning Call, Paterson, NJ, Sat., Sep. 1, 1934.
The Morning Post, Camden, NJ, Wed., Jan. 15, 1936.
The Morning News, Wilmington, DE, Sat., Feb. 15, 1936.
The Morning Post, Camden, NJ, Wed., Jan. 10, 1940.
The Morning News, Wilmington, DE, Fri., May 26, 1950.