City National Bank, Saint Louis, MO (Charter 7808)
City National Bank, Saint Louis, MO (Chartered 1905 - Liquidated 1910)
Town History
St. Louis is the second-largest city in Missouri. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which extends into Illinois, had an estimated population of over 2.8 million, making it the largest metropolitan area in Missouri and the second-largest in Illinois.
The founding of St. Louis was preceded by a trading business between Gilbert Antoine de St. Maxent and Pierre Laclède Liguest in the fall of 1763. St. Maxent invested in a Mississippi River expedition led by Laclède, who searched for a location to base the company's fur trading operations. Though Ste. Genevieve was already established as a trading center, he sought a place less prone to flooding. He found an elevated area overlooking the flood plain of the Mississippi River, not far south from its confluence with the Missouri and Illinois rivers. In addition to having an advantageous natural drainage system, there were nearby forested areas to supply timber and grasslands which could easily be converted for agricultural purposes. This place, declared Laclède, “might become, hereafter, one of the finest cities in America.” He dispatched his 14-year-old stepson, Auguste Chouteau, to the site, with the support of 30 settlers in February 1764. Laclède arrived at the future town site two months later and produced a plan for St. Louis based on the New Orleans street plan. The default block size was 240 by 300 feet, with just three long avenues running parallel to the west bank of the Mississippi. He established a public corridor of 300 feet fronting the river, but later this area was released for private development.
St. Louis was transferred to the French First Republic in 1800 (although all of the colonial lands continued to be administered by Spanish officials), then sold by the French to the U.S. in 1803 as part of the Louisiana Purchase. St. Louis became the capital of, and gateway to, the new territory. Shortly after the official transfer of authority was made, the Lewis and Clark Expedition was commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson. The expedition departed from St. Louis in May 1804 along the Missouri River to explore the vast territory.
St. Louis became a major port on the Mississippi River and from 1870 until the 1920 census, it was the fourth-largest city in the country. It separated from St. Louis County in 1877, becoming an independent city and limiting its political boundaries. In 1904, it hosted the Louisiana Purchase Exposition and the Summer Olympics.
Saint Louis had 42 National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and 37 of those banks issued National Bank Notes.
Bank History
- Organized May 11, 1905
- Chartered June 26, 1905
- Opened for business August 21, 1905
- Liquidated November 14, 1910
- Absorbed by 8455 (Central National Bank, Saint Louis, MO)
In September 1905, stockholders of the City National Bank elected the following directors: Maurice Landau, president Globe Shoe and Clothing Co.; J. E. Allan, president, Allan-Pfeifer Chemical Co.; P.J. Farrington, secretary, St. Louis House Furnishing Co.; N. Friedman, N. Friedman & Sons, Cloak Manufacturing Co.; J.W. Losse, president, J.W. Losse Tailoring Co.; E.L. Schaper, Schaper Bros. Dry Goods Co.; M. Himmelbaum, Himmelbaum Leather Co.; Aug. K. Luyties, Luyties Bros. Mercantile Co.; T.L. Rubinstein, president, New Era Manufacturing Co.; Joseph M. Michaels, secretary and treasurer, Michaels Loan and Mercantile Co.; Charles Niedringhaus, president, Charles Niedringhaus House Furnishing Co.; Jacob Berger, insurance; J.F. Sensenbrenner, secretary and manager, Hilts Shoe Co.; Samuel Schwartz, capitalist; Howard A. Blossom, The Insurance Agency Co. At a subsequent meeting of the directors the following named officers were elected: President, Maurice Landau; first vice president, J.E. Allan; second vice president, P.J. Farrington; cashier. H.R. Rehme. The City National Bank was located at the northwest corner of Eleventh Street and Franklin Avenue.
In January 1906, the stockholders re-elected the same board with the exception of Howard A. Blossom who was replaced by M.P. Pufeles of the Pufeles-Ganz Cloak Co.
In November 1910, the Central National Bank of St. Louis announced they bought the assets and assumed the liabilities of the City National Bank of St. Louis. Messrs. Landau, Rubinstein, Berger, and Rehme, the president, vice presidents and cashier of the City National joined the Central National. Directors of the Central National were Maurice Landau, president, Globe Shoe and Clothing Co.; T.L. Rubinstein, president, New Era Manufacturing Co.; Joseph M. Michaels, president, Michaels Loan and Mercantile Co.; Charles Niedringhaus, president, Chas. Niedringhause House Furniture Co.; Jacob Berger, vice president; M.P. Pufeles, Pufeles-Ganz Cloak Co.; Bernard Greensfelder, Attorney; Benjamin Silverburg, Silverburg Dry Goods Co.; and H.R. Rehme, cashier.
The organization of the City Trust Company, a new St. Louis financial institution, was completed Wednesday, January 4, 1911. The company would open for business on January 18 at the old location of the City National Bank, at Eleventh and Franklin Avenue. The first meeting of directors was planned for Jan. 9th, and H.R. Rehme, former cashier of the City National Bank, was expected to be chosen president. The directors for the first year were: H.R. Rehme, Bernard Greensfelder, R.E. McDonald, Ed Jacobs and Edgar Roberts. Five directors of the Central National Bank were stockholders of the City Trust Co.
Official Bank Title(s)
1: The City National Bank of St. Louis, MO
Bank Note Types Issued
A total of $628,800 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1905 and 1910. This consisted of a total of 75,528 notes (75,528 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 1902 Red Seal 4x5 1 - 6670 1902 Red Seal 3x10-20 1 - 4732 1902 Date Back 4x5 1 - 3840 1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 3640
Bank Presidents and Cashiers
Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1905 - 1910):
Presidents:
Cashiers:
Other Bank Note Signers
- There are currently no known Vice President or Assistant Cashier bank note signers for this bank.
Wiki Links
- Missouri Bank Note History
- General information on Saint Louis (Wikipedia)
- General information on St. Louis County (Wikipedia)
- General information on Missouri (Wikipedia)
Sources
- Saint Louis, MO, 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
- St. Louis Post-Dispatch, St. Louis, MO, Mon., Sep. 4, 1905.
- St. Louis Post-Dispatch, St. Louis, MO, Fri., Jan. 12, 1906.
- The St. Louis Star and Times, St. Louis, MO, Fri., Nov. 4, 1910.
- St. Louis Post-Dispatch, St. Louis, MO, Wed., Jan. 4, 1911.