Peoples National Bank, Martinsville, VA (Charter 9847)
Peoples National Bank, Martinsville, VA (Chartered 1910 - Liquidated 1932)
Town History
Martinsville is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,485. A community of both Southside and Southwest Virginia, it is the county seat of Henry County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. Martinsville is the principal city of the Martinsville Micropolitan Statistical Area, with a population of 63,765 as of the 2020 census. In 1910 the population was 3,368 growing to 7,705 by 1930.
Martinsville was founded by American Revolutionary War General, Native American agent, and explorer Joseph Martin, born in Albemarle County. He developed his plantation Scuffle Hill on the banks of the Smith River near the present-day southern city limits. General Martin and revolutionary patriot Patrick Henry, who lived briefly in Henry County and for whom the county is named, were good friends.
In 1873 Martinsville's first charter was granted when municipal authority was vested in seven trustees. The town was given its first impetus when the Danville & New River Railroad from Danville to Stuart was built in 1880-82. The name of the road was changed to Danville & Western. With the arrival of the railroad, tobacco sales and manufacture became the leading trade commodity of the town. In 1890 a new railroad from Winston-Salem to Roanoke was started and completed to Martinsville in 1891, and about a year later to Roanoke. The line was purchased by the Norfolk & Western. In addition to chewing tobacco, Martinsville had four large furniture factories and there were three others equally large at nearby points in Henry County. In the 1920s, Henry County accounted for 75% of the furniture manufactured in Virginia.[1]
In 1947, the paperclip-shaped oval Martinsville Speedway opened. In use by NASCAR since their inaugural season in 1949, it is still in operation by the racing organization today. The speedway is the shortest oval in NASCAR at 0.526 miles and is located just outside the city near the town of Ridgeway.
Martinsville had two National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and both of those banks issued National Bank Notes.
Bank History
- Organized August 30, 1910
- Chartered September 12, 1910
- Conversion of The Peoples Bank of Martinsville
- Liquidated February 15, 1932
- Absorbed by 7206 (First National Bank, Martinsville, VA)
The first bank in Martinsville was organized in 1882 with Judge S.G. Whittle as president and J.A. Brown, cashier. The Peoples Bank, later the Peoples National Bank, was established in 1890 and the Farmers Bank, later the First National Bank, started in 1893. The Piedmont Trust Company was organized in 1922.[2]
On September 12, 1910, Lawrence O. Murray, Comptroller of the Currency, authorized The Peoples National Bank of Martinsville to commence business. Mr. J.P. Lewis, cashier of the Peoples Bank, received the telegram.[3]
In February 1922, Martinsville had two national banks with aggregated resources of $3,000,000. The Peoples National Bank was founded in 1891; it had capital stock of $80,000 and a surplus of $25,000. The deposits were over $1,000,000 and total assets about $1,450,000. The officers were T.G. Burch, president; C.B. Keesee, vice president; J.A. Brown, cashier; Zera Cannaday, assistant cashier. A third bank, the Piedmont Trust Bank, had been organized and planned to open around March 1st. At the organization meeting, the following well-known businessmen of Martinsville and Henry County, were selected to manage the new bank: Thomas G. Burch, president; A.D. Witten, first vice president; B.M. Townes, second vice president; R.P. Gravely, secretary and treasurer. The bank had no trouble raising $200,000 for its capital stock.[4]
On Wednesday, July 5, 1922, Mr. Zera Cannaday, the assistant cashier of the Peoples National Bank, returned from a weeks visit to Atlantic City and Baltimore. Mr. Cannaday was an occupant of one of the cars of the Midnight FLyer which toppled down a fifty foot embankment in a train wreck at Winslow Junction, near Atlantic City on July 2nd in which several passengers were killed and many seriously injured.[5] The car in which Mr. Cannaday was riding turned over two or three times but he escaped practically uninjured, receiving only a scratch on his hand.[6]
In August 1926, the directors were C.B. Keesee, A.D. Witten, J.H. Stanley, J.B. Sparrow, S.G. Whittle, Jr., J.C. Kearfoot, and J.A. Brown. The officers were C.B. Keesee, president; and J.A. Brown, vice president and cashier. the bank had total resources of $1,534,289.73 at the close of business on June 30th.[7]
On October 27, 1931, James R. Bondurant, teller, was indicted in the United States District Court for embezzling $9,000. The accused was in custody in New York.[8] The next day, J.A. Brown former cashier, was indicted on embezzling bank funds to the extent of $42,300. Mr. Brown pleaded guilty and was sentenced by Judge H.C. McDowell to serve five years in the federal prison at Atlanta.[9] In January 1932, James R. Bondurant pleaded guilty to mis-applying approximately $9,000 of the bank's funds and was sentenced by Judge McDowell to one year and one day in the federal penitentiary at Atlanta. J.A. Brown, cashier of the local bank, was indicted at the same times and later given a five year term in the federal prison.[10] The First National Bank absorbed the Peoples National Bank after the shortages in the latter bank were discovered. It was stated that depositors of the defunct institution would suffer no loss.[11]
Official Bank Title(s)
1: The Peoples National Bank of Martinsville, VA
Bank Note Types Issued
A total of $1,421,730 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1910 and 1932. This consisted of a total of 180,624 notes (155,844 large size and 24,780 small size notes).
This bank issued the following Types and Denominations of bank notes:
Series/Type Sheet/Denoms Serial#s Sheet Comments 1902 Date Back 4x5 1 - 6330 1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 4968 1902 Plain Back 4x5 6331 - 23905 1902 Plain Back 3x10-20 4969 - 15056 1929 Type 1 6x5 1 - 2577 1929 Type 1 6x10 1 - 1214 1929 Type 1 6x20 1 - 339
Bank Presidents and Cashiers
Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1910 - 1932):
Presidents:
- Dr. Clarence Pierceall Kearfott, 1911-1920
- Thomas Granville Burch, 1921-1921
- Charles B. Keesee, 1922-1930
Cashiers:
Other Known Bank Note Signers
Bank Note History Links
Sources
- Martinsville, VA, 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 Roanoke Times, Roanoke, VA, Tue., Aug. 24, 1926.
- ↑ The Roanoke Times, Roanoke, VA, Tue., Aug. 24, 1926.
- ↑ The News and Advance, Lynchburg, VA, Sun., Sep. 18, 1910.
- ↑ Richmond Times-Dispatch, Richmond, VA, Sun., Feb. 19, 1922.
- ↑ The Record, Hackensack, NJ, Mon., July 3, 1922.
- ↑ The World-News, Roanoke, VA, Tue., July 11, 1922.
- ↑ The Roanoke Times, Roanoke, VA, Tue., Aug. 24, 1926.
- ↑ The Bee, Danville, VA, Wed., Oct. 28, 1931.
- ↑ The Bee, Danville, VA, Tue. Oct. 27, 1931.
- ↑ News and Record, Greensboro, NC, Tue., Jan. 12, 1932.
- ↑ The Daily News Leader, Staunton, VA, Wed., Oct. 28, 1931.