Peoples Trust Co. of Brooklyn NB Association, New York, NY (Charter 12932)

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In 1906, the Peoples Trust Company moved into its new building on Montague Street in Brooklyn, New York
In 1906, the Peoples Trust Company moved into its new building on Montague Street in Brooklyn, New York.

Peoples TC of Brooklyn NB Association (No Issue), New York, NY (Chartered 1926 - Liquidated 1926)

Town History

The old Peoples Trust Company of Brooklyn at 181 Montague Street. To the left is the old Brooklyn Trust Company.
The old Peoples Trust Company of Brooklyn at 181 Montague Street. To the left is the old Brooklyn Trust Company. Courtesy of Google Maps, ca2023

Brooklyn is a borough of New York City. Located on the westernmost edge of Long Island, it is coextensive with Kings County, New York. With 2,736,074 residents as of the 2020 United States census, Kings County is the most populous of the five boroughs of New York City and the most populous county in the State of New York. Were Brooklyn still an independent city, it would be the fourth most populous in the U.S. after the rest of New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago.

Named after the Dutch town of Breukelen in the Netherlands, Brooklyn shares a border with the borough of Queens. It has several bridge and tunnel connections to the borough of Manhattan, across the East River, and is connected to Staten Island by way of the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge. With a land area of 69.38 square miles and a water area of 27.48 square miles, Kings County is the state of New York's fourth-smallest county by land area and third smallest by total area.

Brooklyn was founded by the Dutch in the 17th century and grew into a busy port city by the 19th century. On January 1, 1898, after a long political campaign and public-relations battle during the 1890s and despite opposition from Brooklyn residents, Brooklyn was consolidated in and annexed (along with other areas) to form the current five-borough structure of New York City in accordance to the new municipal charter of "Greater New York". The borough continues to maintain some distinct culture. Many Brooklyn neighborhoods are ethnic enclaves. Having a larger Jewish population than Jerusalem, the borough has been described as "the most Jewish spot on Earth", with Jews forming around a quarter of its population. Brooklyn's official motto, displayed on the borough seal and flag, is Eendraght Maeckt Maght, which translates from early modern Dutch as 'Unity makes strength'.

Brooklyn had 5 National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and all 5 of those banks issued National Bank Notes. The Peoples Trust Company of Brooklyn National Banking Association is associated with New York City and it did not issue notes.

Bank History

Main banking room of the Peoples Trust Company upon opening in 1906
Main banking room of the Peoples Trust Company upon opening in 1906.
Vault with door open revealing a steel grill and safe deposit boxes
Vault constructed for the Peoples Trust Company of Brooklyn by the Herring-Hall-Marvin Safe Co. With the door open, special steel grills and safe deposit boxes are seen.[1]
Vault with door closed showing combination locks and crane hinge
Vault with door closed showing combination locks and crane hinge. The door and frame weighed 44,000 pounds.[2]
  • Organized May 20, 1926
  • Chartered May 21, 1926
  • Non-issuing, conversion of The Peoples Trust Company of Brooklyn, NY
  • Consolidated with 1461 (National City Bank, New York, NY)
  • Liquidated June 26, 1926

The Peoples Trust Company of Brooklyn was organized in 1889, capital $500,000 and surplus $250,000, with William H. Murtha being the first president. William B. Hill was the temporary secretary of the Peoples Trust Company. The incorporators were Eugene G. Blackford, Frederick A. Schroeder, Henry J. Cullen, Jr., Frederic A. Ward, Howard M. Smith, Cornelius N. Hoagland, Jacob G. Dettmer, Isidor M. Bon, Alonzo Slote, John E. Searles, Jr., Solomon W. Johnson, William B. Hill, Joseph W. Carroll, James Jourdan, Henry W. Slocum, George L. Pease, Daniel F. Lewis, William H. Murtha, and George P. Tangeman.[3] Mr. Murtha was succeeded in 1896 by Felix Campbell, who was followed in turn by Edward Johnson in 1903. Mr. Johnson was the first secretary of the company and was succeeded in that position by Charles A. Boody. Mr. Boody joined the company as bookkeeper upon its organization and was made assistant secretary in 1891.

In 1906, Mr. Johnson and Mr. Boody were the only members of the active staff who were with the company at the start. The other officers were J.G. Dettmer and Horace J. Morse, vice presidents; Charles L. Schenck, Henry M. Heath, William A. Fischer, and John T. Williams, assistant secretaries; George W. Wingate, counsel. The trustees were: David A. Boody of Boody, McLellan & Co., bankers; Amory S. Carhart, retired; William M. Cole, retired; William C. Courtney, lawyer; J.G. Dettmer, retired; Charles M. Englis, John Englis & Son; William H. Good, lawyer; Edward M. Grout, lawyer; William B. Hill, lawyer, Edward Johnson, president; Solomon W. Johnson, president, American News Co.; James Jourdan, president, Brooklyn Union Gas Co.; Adrian T. Kiernan, lawyer; W. Eugene Kimball, R.J. Kimball & Co., bankers; James McMahon, ex-president, Emigrant Industrial Savings Bank; Horace J. Morse, A.M. Kidder & Co., bankers; Herbert L. Pratt, Charles Pratt & Co.; Clarence W. Seamans, president, Union Typewriter Co.; Howard M. Smith, president, Brevoort Savings Bank; Casimir Tag, president, German-American Bank; George P. Tangeman, retired; J.N. Wallace, president Central Trust Co. of New York; and William H. Zeigler, retired. The Peoples' Trust Company had three branches--Bedford Avenue and Halsey Street, Clinton and Myrtle Avenues and 47 Washington Avenue. As of January 1, 1906, capital was $1,000,000, surplus and profits, $1,709,236.96, and deposits, $16,660,962.80. The total assets were $19,436,106.26.[4]

On Monday, March 26, 1906, the Peoples Trust Company of Brooklyn moved into its new building on Montague Street, a handsome addition to Brooklyn's financial district. The front was marble and granite, while the interior was finished in mahogany and Numidian marble with appropriate grille work and other fixtures. The offices of the president and secretary were at the right and left, respectively, of the main entrance. Adjoining the secretary's office was the banking department, in the rear of which was the safe deposit department with its great vault. The trust department was on the right with an attractive waiting room equipped with telephone and other conveniences. Adjoining was a separate book and cash vault and on the right was the trust department. In the mezzanine story in front were the bookkeepers' quarters and in the basement were the vaults for storage of bulky articles and another banking room used exclusively by city employees for cashing their pay checks payable on the Peoples Trust Company.[5]

In March 1926, the National City Bank of New York bought the Peoples Trust Company of Brooklyn in a $16,700,000 deal, paying approximately $835 a share. The Peoples Trust Company of Brooklyn operated a main office on Montague Street and 10 branch offices in various sections of the borough. This would be the biggest bank merger accomplished with a Brooklyn institution and marked entry into this borough of the most powerful bank in the United States. Charles E. Mitchell was president of National City Bank with total resources of $1,291,000,000 and just under a billion dollars in deposits. A national bank was not permitted to operate branches, but could maintain separate offices under the law that permitted "tellers windows" in various locations. The National City Bank made it clear that there would be no change in personnel of the Brooklyn offices and those would soon carry the name of the New York institution. In order to effect this merger, the Peoples Trust Company of Brooklyn would convert to the Peoples Trust Company of Brooklyn, National Association under a national charter.[6]

Charles L. Schenk, vice president of the Peoples Trust, who was designated as acting president after the death of Charles A. Boody about a month earlier, would remain in charge. A merger was reported with the Brooklyn Trust Co., next door neighbor to the Peoples Trust in Montague Street, but the National City Bank became the stronger bidder.[7]

Official Bank Title(s)

1: The Peoples Trust Company of Brooklyn National Banking Association of New York, NY

Bank Note Types Issued

No National Bank Notes were issued by this bank.

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1926 - 1926):

Presidents:

Cashiers:

Other Known Bank Note Signers

  • No other known bank note signers for this bank

Bank Note History Links


Sources

  • New York, 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
  1. ↑ The Bankers' Magazine, Vol. 107, July 1923-Dec. 1923, p. 659.
  2. ↑ The Bankers' Magazine, Vol. 107, July 1923-Dec. 1923, p. 660.
  3. ↑ The Brooklyn Citizen, Brooklyn, NY, Thu., June 13, 1889.
  4. ↑ The Bankers' Magazine, Vol. 72, Jan. 1906-June 1906, pp 581-4.
  5. ↑ The Bankers' Magazine, Vol. 72, Jan. 1906-June 1906, p. 581-4.
  6. ↑ Times Union, Brooklyn, NY, Thu., Mar. 4, 1926.
  7. ↑ Times Union, Brooklyn, NY, Thu., Feb. 11, 1926.
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