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Second National Bank, Scranton, PA (Charter 49)

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Postcard of the Traders National Bank of Scranton ca1910s.
Postcard of the Traders National Bank of Scranton ca1910s. Originally, this was a five-story building erected in 1870-1872 for the Second National Bank on the corner of Lackawanna and Penn Avenues. Courtesy of Adam Stroup

Second National Bank, Scranton, PA (Chartered 1863 - Receivership 1879)

Town History

Main banking room, Traders National Bank of Scranton, ca1910.
Main banking room, Traders National Bank of Scranton, ca1910.[1]

Scranton is located in Lackawanna County.

Scranton had 10 National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and eight of those banks issued National Bank Notes.

Bank History

  • Chartered August 5, 1863
  • Assumed 521 by consolidation March 1, 1867 (First National Bank, Providence, PA)
  • Receivership March 15, 1879

On August 5, 1863, the Second National Bank of Scranton was authorized by the Hon. Hugh McCulloch, Comptroller of the Currency, to commence the business of banking under the act of February 25th, 1863. Its officers were T.F. Hunt, president; Jno. Wilson, vice president; W.W. Winton, cashier. The directors were T.F. Hunt, S. Grant, Jno. Wilson, Jas. S. Slocum, Geo. Cone, Elisha Phinney, Geo. Fisher, Wm. Hull, and Wm. Silkman.[2] The institution was the outgrowth of the private banking establishment of Winton & Co., and on September 10th opened business on Penn Avenue with a capital of $50,000.[3][4]

On Tuesday, January 12, 1864, stockholders of the Second National Bank elected the following officers for the ensuing year: T.F. Hunt, president; W.W. Winton, cashier; O.C. Moore, teller; T.F. Hunt, John Wilson, J.S. Slocum, Wm. Hull, Wm. Silkman, E. Phinny, Joseph Godfrey, Seaford Grant, and George Fisher.[5] Mr. Oscar C. Moore, the teller, had been for some years employed in that capacity in the prosperous and popular banking house of Gillespie, Pierce & Co. and had won the esteem of the people of Carbondale.[6] 

In January 1867, the Ofner building on Lackawanna Avenue, opposite the Wyoming House, was fitted up for the use of the First National Bank of Providence which expected to move to this more central portion of the city the week starting January 14th.  Mr. Myron J. Clark, the cashier and principal manager was a pleasant gentleman who was generally welcomed by businessmen down town. Winton, Clark & Co. would fill the gap occasioned by the change of location by opening a banking office in the first ward under charge of Mr. S.B. Mott.[7] The move to the Eighth ward was done with the full consent of the comptroller of the currency given after the grant of a city charter had erased the borough lines of Providence and Scranton. After the move, objections were filed by the First National Bank of Scranton and the Solicitor of the Treasury gave an opinion adverse to the legality of the moved. As a result of this the board of directors of the First National Bank of Providence resolved to go into liquidation and by consent of the comptroller of the currency, the capital and assets of the First National of Providence would be transferred to the Second National Bank of Scranton, increasing its capital stock to $300,000 and enabling it to increase its circulation correspondingly. The banking office of Winton, Clark & Co. would take the place of the national bank at Providence.[8]

In March 1867, the First National Bank of Providence entered voluntary liquidation by a vote of its stockholders and directors and was no longer a banking institution. It would be consolidated with the Second National whose stockholders recently decided to increase the stock of the bank by $100,000.[9] In December 1867, an announcement was made by The New York Times that the First National Bank of Providence, Pennsylvania, had consolidated with the Second National Bank of Scranton.[10]

Mr. P.C. Carling, cashier since succeeding W.W. Winton in 1865, served until the early part of 1870 when ill-health caused his resignation, and he was succeeded by E.R. Mills. The lots for the fine building at the corner of Penn and Lackawanna Avenues were purchased in June 1870 and the building was completed and ready for occupancy a year later.[11] The walls were constructed of mountain granite and were four feet thick with the exception of the front wall which was 6 feet thick and strengthened by heavy stone buttresses. The designer and architect of the building was Mr. I.G. Perry of Binghamton and the builder was John G. King. The front of the edifice on Lackawanna Avenue and 16 feet on the side street were of the Campbell Lodge stone from the lower valley. The design of the front consisted of massive buttresses of beveled stone, relieved in the angles by pillars that supported the window arches. The remaineder of the building was of Philadelphia pressed brick banded with stone. The plan of the building consisted of a cellar, basement, banking floor, two floors for offices, public hall and a loft for ventilation giving five stories for business purposes. The vault consisted of a solid mass of masonry up to the basement floor. Above that it consisted of blocks of the hardest conglomerate two feet square and from six to eight feet long. These were secured by cement and iron balls making it impossible to remove a stone. The inside of the vault was eight by twelve feet. The doors were made by Herring, Farrel & Sherman and the Detroit Safe Co. They were secured by the Dexter lock. Inside was a burglar-proof safe manufactured by Herring, Farrel & Sherman, weighing 7,100 pounds. Passing from the basement on to the pavement and ascending by an ornate and substantial iron stairway through the outside doors, one encountered the superb finish of everything. The hall was wainscoted with beautiful Western walnut. The doors were from the works of Hand & Coston, Providence, and were of the same wood and rich finish. The banking counter was an elaborate specimen of woodwork. It was made of Western walnut relieved in the panels by delicately tinted French walnut. The bank opened Monday evening, June 17th, 1872. About nine o'clock the invited guests began to assemble and by ten the huge structure was crowded from basement to dome with the elite, youth and beauty of the city.[12]

On Tuesday afternoon, January 10, 1871, the election of officers of the Second National Bank took place at their banking house. The following were chosen officers for the ensuing year: W.W. Winton, president; Thomas Livey, vice president; E.R. Mills, cashier. The directors were W.W. Winton, Ira Tripp, J.T. Fellows, H. Griffin, W.H. Heath, W.P. Carling, I. Dean, Myron Dean, and Walter W. Winton.[13]

On Friday May 1, 1878, a reduction of deposits and the inability of the bank to realize upon its assets caused it to close its doors. Most of the stock was owned by W.W. Winton and his family and the general depression then prevailing and the consequent shrinkage of real estate valued had caused them to lose heavily. The depositors were assured by the president that they would not lose anything as the capital stock was $200,000, the surplus $70,000 and the undivided profits $10,000, and when the affairs of the bank were examined by Bank Examiner Drew, he found them in good condition and said that the institution would pay its depositors in full with nterest which was finall done. To avoid the expense of a receiver, the bank went into voluntary liquidation and had paid about $60,000 of its liabilities when litigation instituted by some of the depositors who had become impatient necessitated the appointment of George L. Goodale of New York as receiver who completed the disposition of its affairs in 1886.[14]

On December 14, 1880, the case of the United States against W.W. Winton, charged with embezzling the moneys of the Second National Bank of Scranton of which he was president was heard before United States Commissioner Gustave Hahn at Wilkes-Barre and resulted in the defendant's complete vindication.[15]

The Traders National Bank commenced business on January 2, 1890 with a capital of $250,000, located in the quarters formerly occupied by the Scranton City Bank.[16] The handsome five-story building was originally erected for the Second National Bank on the corner of Lackawanna and Penn Avenues.[17]

Official Bank Title

1: The Second National Bank of Scranton, PA

Bank Note Types Issued

Original Series $5 bank note
Original Series $5 bank note with pen signatures of E.R. Mills, Cashier and Thomas Levey, Vice President.[18]

A total of $562,060 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1863 and 1879. This consisted of a total of 74,104 notes (74,104 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
Original Series 4x5 1 - 8949
Original Series 4x10 1 - 9577

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1863 - 1879):

Presidents:

Cashiers:

Other Known Bank Note Signers

Bank Note History Links

Sources

  • Scranton, PA, 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. 82, Jan. 1911-June 1911, p. 275.
  2. ↑ Carbondale Advance, Carbondale, PA, Sat., Aug. 15, 1863.
  3. ↑ The Tribune, Scranton, PA, Sat., Feb. 6, 1897.
  4. ↑ The Scranton Republican, Scranton, PA, Wed., June 19, 1872.
  5. ↑ Carbondale Advance, Carbondale, PA, Sat., Jan. 23, 1864.
  6. ↑ Carbondale Advance, Carbondale, PA, Sat., Sep. 12, 1863.
  7. ↑ The Scranton Republican, Scranton, PA, Fri., Jan. 11, 1867.
  8. ↑ The Scranton Republican, Scranton, PA, Fri., Mar. 8, 1867.
  9. ↑ Carbondale Advance, Carbondale, PA, Sat., Mar. 9, 1867.
  10. ↑ The New York Times, New York, NY, Tue., Dec. 3, 1867.
  11. ↑ The Tribune, Scranton, PA, Sat., Feb. 6, 1897.
  12. ↑ The Scranton Republican, Scranton, PA, Wed., June 19, 1872.
  13. ↑ The Tribune, Scranton, PA, Wed., Jan. 11, 1871.
  14. ↑ The Tribune, Scranton, PA, Sat., Feb. 6, 1897.
  15. ↑ Lebanon Daily News, Lebanon, PA, Wed., Dec. 15, 1880.
  16. ↑ The Scranton Republican, Scranton, PA, Sat., Feb. 6, 1897.
  17. ↑ The Tribune, Scranton, PA, Sat., Sep. 10, 1892.
  18. ↑ Hickman Auctions Inc., West Des Moines, IA, Auction #2, June 19, 1990, p. 5.
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