First National Bank, Shingle House, PA (Charter 6799)
First National Bank, Shingle House, PA (Chartered 1903 - Closed (Merger) 1974)
Town History
Shinglehouse is a borough in Potter County, Pennsylvania. The post office for Shinglehouse, Potter County, was opened in 1856. On Monday, March 3, 1902 a charter of incorporation was granted and Shinglehouse became a borough. The population was 1,108 at the time of the 2020 census. In 1910 the population was 1,598, decreasing to 1,106 by 1940.
A Frenchman named M. Generet (pronounced Jandray) built the first house in 1806, just outside of the borough across the McKean County Line. From this log cabin, covered with hand-made wooden shingles and nestled among the huge pine trees, the village received its name. Jander’s Run, a small tributary entering the Oswayo River from the south, is named after him in a corrupted form.
In the 1830’s, pine lumbering was very prominent in this area, being one of the first industries to Shinglehouse. The mid 1800’s and the early 1900’s also brought many hotels to the borough, many small businesses were also present including a jewelry store, furniture store, general merchandise store, hardware store, meat market, drug store, bank, theater, a wagon and buggy shop, and a gas company. A grist mill was built in 1875 on the upper end of Oswayo Street. Many gas and oil wells were also being drilled; the first gas well was drilled in 1886. Many of theses gas wells were used to supply the Palmer Window Glass Plant. In 1900 the New York and Pennsylvania Railroad came to town, where it joined the Pittsburgh, Shawmut and Northern Railroad. The First passenger train arrived in Shinglehouse on Monday, October 29, 1900. The Palmer Window Glass Company (South Mill St. area) was built in 1901, and employed many of the area residents until it closed in 1921. This was the largest industry ever to operate in Shinglehouse. The Elk Flint Bottle Company (Second St. Area) started operation in 1904, and closed in 1919. In 1916, a silk mill opened (North Mill St. area) and a weaving mill (the old Elk Flint Bottle Company Building), and went bankrupt and closed in 1930. In 1913 a trolley system was established from Shinglehouse to Olean, New York.
Shingle House had one National Bank chartered during the Bank Note Era, and it issued National Bank Notes.
Bank History
- Organized April 20, 1903
- Chartered May 26, 1903
- Opened for business June 8, 1903
- Bank was Open past 1935
- For Bank History after 1935 see FDIC Bank History website
- Merged into Commonwealth Bank and Trust Company in Muncy, PA, July 2, 1974
On Tuesday, May 26, 1903, the comptroller of the currency authorized the First National Bank of Shingle House, with a capital of $625,000, to begin business. Levi C. Kinner was president and George B. Scott, cashier.[1]
On Wednesday morning, December 21, 1904, the new bank building of the First National Bank of Shingle House was opened to the public. George B. Scott was the courteous and congenial cashier. E.B. Carroll, the energetic clothier of the glass town was the first man to make a deposit in the bank.[2]
The February 4th, 1913, report from the First National bank of Shingle House showed capital stock of $25,000. The surplus was $29,000 and net profits nearly $1,000 and deposits $184,119.84. Directors were L.C. Kinner, C.A. Wolcott, A. Saloman, W.A. Nichols, W.G. Cornelison, J.S. Hickok, J.B. Donovan, F.H. Raymond, C.C. Van DeBoe, and G.B. Scott.[3] In October 1913, John C. Gault of Olean was elected cashier of the First National Bank of Shingle House to succeed George B. Scott who resigned. H.C. Keller, formerly station agent at the N.Y. & P. station was elected assistant cashier. Mr. Gault showed exceptional ability during his residence of a year and a half in Shingle House and his many friends congratulated him on his rapid advancement.[4]
In January 1974, announcement was made that the First National Bank of Shingle House had combined resources with Commonwealth Bank and Trust Company with combined assets of over $100 million. The Shinglehouse Branch at 1 Oswayo Street joined Commonwealth's 10 other offices in Galeton, Hughesville, Jersey Shore, Lawrenceville, Mansfield, Muncy, Sayre, Wellsboro, Westfield, and Williamsport. Mr. R. Glen Fenstermacher was president of Commonwealth Bank and F.T. Hewitt was executive officer, First National Bank of Shingle House.[5]
Official Bank Title(s)
1: The First National Bank of Shingle House, PA
Bank Note Types Issued
A total of $504,150 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1903 and 1935. This consisted of a total of 42,156 notes (33,396 large size and 8,760 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 3x10-20 1 - 1650 1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 2300 1902 Plain Back 3x10-20 2301 - 6699 1929 Type 1 6x5 1 - 170 1929 Type 1 6x10 1 - 722 1929 Type 1 6x20 1 - 190 1929 Type 2 5 1 - 1440 1929 Type 2 10 1 - 828
Bank Presidents and Cashiers
Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1903 - 1935):
Presidents:
Cashiers:
- George B. Scott, 1903-1913
- John Clifton Gault, 1914-1919
- H. C. Keller, 1920-1926
- Romeo Lee Lunn, 1927-1933
- Owen Thomas Jenkins, 1934-1935
Other Known Bank Note Signers
- No other known bank note signers for this bank
Bank Note History Links
- First National Bank, Shingle House, PA History (NB Lookup)
- Pennsylvania Bank Note History (BNH Wiki)
Sources
- Shingle House, PA, on Wikipedia
- Shinglehouse borough
- 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