West Branch National Bank, Williamsport, PA (Charter 1505)
West Branch National Bank, Williamsport, PA (Chartered 1865 - Liquidated 1926)
Town History
Williamsport is a city in, and the county seat of, Lycoming County, Pennsylvania. In 2019, the population was estimated at 28,186. The city is the cultural, financial, and commercial center of Central Pennsylvania. It is 131 miles from Philadelphia, 166 miles from Pittsburgh and 85 miles from Harrisburg. It is known for its sports, arts scene and food. Williamsport was settled by Americans in the late 18th century, and began to prosper due to its lumber industry. By the early 20th century, it reached the height of its prosperity. The population has since declined by about a third from its peak of around 45,000 in 1950.
As county seat, Williamsport has the county courthouse, county prison, sheriff's office headquarters and federal courthouse, all downtown. It is also home to two institutions of higher learning, the Pennsylvania College of Technology and Lycoming College. Williamsport is bordered by the West Branch of the Susquehanna River to the south.
Williamsport is the birthplace of Little League Baseball. South Williamsport, a town nearby, is the headquarters of Little League Baseball and annually hosts the Little League World Series in late summer. On June 6, 1939 the first Little League Baseball game was played on a sandlot outside Bowman Field in Williamsport. Carl Stotz conceived the idea of a Little League, and he and Bert and George Bebble managed the first three teams.
Williamsport had seven National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and all seven of those banks issued National Bank Notes.
Bank History
- Organized June 13, 1865
- Chartered August 7, 1865
- Succeeded West Branch Bank
- Assumed 3705 by consolidation April 24, 1900 (Merchants National Bank, Williamsport, PA)
- Liquidated December 31, 1926
- Succeeded by Lycoming Trust Company
On March 20, 1900, The Merchants National Bank of Williamsport closed its doors. The West Branch National Bank assumed all the business of the Merchants and would honor all checks and drafts as part of the consolidation.
On July 27, 1926 the organization of a new trust company in Williamsport was announced. It would absorb the Northern Central Trust Company, the West Branch National Bank and the Lycoming National Bank of Williamsport the assets of which totaled $15,000,000. The new trust company would organize with $2,000,000 capital and surplus of $500,000 and would have combined deposits of 12,000,000. This would make the new institution the largest of its kind within a radius of 100 miles and one of the ten largest financial institutions in the state outside of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
The new Lycoming Trust Company started business on January 3, 1927 in the quarters of the West Branch National Bank, the Northern Central Trust Company and the Lycoming National Bank and in all the branches of these three financial institutions under the name of the Lycoming Trust. The three old banking concerns retired from business.
On November 12, 1930, stockholders of the Lycoming Trust Company and the Susquehanna Trust Company approved the merger of the two banking institutions. The new corporation, to be know as the Lycoming Trust Company, had capitalization of $2,000,000 and a surplus of $500,000. The assets were approximately $17,000,000 and it had a combined trust fund under administration exceeding $16,000,000. John G. Reading, president of the Susquehanna Trust Company since 1897, was made chairman of the board of the merged bank. Henry C. Bubb, honorary president of the Lycoming Trust Company since its creation in 1927 continued as honorary president of the new corporation. James B. Graham, president of Lycoming Trust became the active president.
Official Bank Title(s)
1: The West Branch National Bank of Williamsport, PA
Bank Note Types Issued
A total of $5,084,100 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1865 and 1926. This consisted of a total of 376,886 notes (376,886 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 - 5600 Original Series 4x10 1 - 1375 Series 1875 4x5 1 - 3500 Series 1875 4x10 1 - 2625 1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 6834 1882 Brown Back 50-100 1 - 1961 1902 Red Seal 3x10-20 1 - 3600 1902 Red Seal 50-100 1 - 1200 1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 20200 1902 Date Back 50-100 1 - 500 1902 Date Back 3x50-100 1 - 1142 1902 Plain Back 3x10-20 20201 - 67715
Bank Presidents and Cashiers
Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1865 - 1926):
Presidents:
Cashiers:
- William Scott Watson, 1865-1881
- Frederick Embich Gleim, (Jr.), 1882-1893
- William H. Painter, 1894-1921
- Edward Everett Shay, 1922-1926
Other Bank Note Signers
- There are currently no known Vice President or Assistant Cashier bank note signers for this bank.
Wiki Links
- Pennsylvania Bank Note History
- General information on Williamsport (Wikipedia)
- General information on Lycoming County (Wikipedia)
- General information on Pennsylvania (Wikipedia)
Sources
- Williamsport, PA, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Williamsport,_Pennsylvania
- 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 Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, Wed., Mar. 21, 1900.
- The Times-Tribune, Scranton, PA, Tue., July 27, 1926.
- Harrisburg Telegraph, Harrisburg, PA, Thu., Dec. 30, 1926.
- The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, Thu., Nov. 13, 1930.