Lafayette National Bank & Trust Co., Luxemburg, MO (Charter 13514)

A map of St. Louis County, Missouri, ca1869-1871 showing Luxemburg. Luxemburg was located South of the Riviere des Peres. The Mississippi River south of St. Louis receives the Des Peres and the larger Meramec Rivers.

Lafayette National Bank and Trust Company (Chartered 1930 - Open past 1935)

Town History

Architect's sketch from 1930 of the new Lafayette National Bank & Trust Company, Luxemburg, Missouri.  The bank was located at 152-154 Lemay Ferry Road.

Luxemburg is located in Saint Louis County. Luxemburg may be found on a map of St. Louis County dating to between 1869 and 1871. It is south of Riviere des Peres and the City of Carondelet, on the south side of St. Louis. The use of Luxemburg seems to have fallen out of use, replaced by Lemay in the late 1930s. In the 1930s and earlier, residents and businesses on Lemay Ferry Road identified their location as Luxemburg.

Luxemburg had one National Bank chartered during the Bank Note Era, and it issued National Bank Notes.

Bank History

• Organized December 15, 1930
• Chartered December 27, 1930
• Bank was Open past 1935

In July 1930, a group of South Side businessmen, including several officers of the Lafayette-South Side Bank & Trust Co., applied for incorporation papers for the Lafayette National Bank & Trust Co. of Luxemburg, Missouri. The new bank would have an authorized capital of $30,000 and a paid-up surplus of $25,000. It would be in Luxemburg on the east side of Lemay Ferry Road, south of River Des Peres, and would operate independently of the Lafayette South Side Bank. Its new building was expected to be completed by November 1, although it planned to open sooner if suitable temporary quarters could be obtained. Among those interested in the new depository were: A.C.F. Meyer, president of the Lafayette-South Side Bank; Joseph Rehme, vice president; Erwin P. Stupp, a director; Charles F. Betz, a director; John P. Meyer, vice president of the South Side National Bank; William Ruprecht of the Ruprecht Sand and Material Co.; T.W. Felsch, assistant cashier of the Southern Commercial & Savings Bank. Felsch, would resign from his present position Aug. 1, to become the cashier of the new Lafayette National Bank & Trust Co.

On Friday, January 2, 1931, the new Lafayette National Bank and Trust Company of Luxemburg, Lemay Ferry and Military Roads, opened its doors for business. The institution would serve the southern portion of St. Louis County and Jefferson County. The bank was a member of the Federal Reserve system and was affiliated with the Lafayette National Company, a finance company. John P. Meyer was president and also a vice president of the South Side National Bank. Erwin P. Stupp, president of Stupp Bros. Bridge and Iron Company was vice president and Theodore W. Felsch was vice president and cashier. William C. Van Ronzalen was assistant cashier. The directors were Charles F. Betz, vice president of the American Cone and Pretzel Co.; Theodore W. Felsch; O.L. Kupferer, secretary and treasurer of Lafayette-South Side Bank and Trust Co.; John P. Meyer, William Ruprecht, president of William Reprecht Investment Co.; and Erwin P. Stupp. Residents of this community now had a choice of two banks to choose from, the Lafayette National Bank and Trust Company and the Lemay Ferry Bank. Both institutions were open on Saturday evenings until 8 o'clock.

On April 4, 1935, a sentence of a year and a day in the Chillicothe (Ohio) Reformatory was imposed by Federal Judge Davis on Paul T. Faust, 24, former clerk of the Lafayette National Bank and Trust Company, Luxemburg, after he pleaded no contest to embezzlement of $1100 last year to finance his wedding. Former Circuit Judge Hoffmeister, attorney for Faust, asked leniency for the youth. He said he has known the Faust family for years and the defendant was the only one of 11 children ever to be in trouble.

On August 3, 1939, State Finance Commissioner R.W. Holt announced the consolidation of the Lemay Ferry Bank and the Lafayette National Bank and Trust Company of Luxemburg in St. Louis County. The new institution was named Lemay Bank and Trust Company with total combined resources of $1,750,897 and deposits of $1,568,143. The merger became effective at the opening of business on July 31, 1939. August Boenecke, president of the Lemay Ferry Bank, was elected president of the new trust company, while Ben L. Barhorst, head of the Lafayette bank, became chairman of the combined boards of the two banks. Located at 153 Lemay Ferry Road, the new trust company would conduct business from the old home of the Lafayette National Bank and Trust Company.

On May 21, 1943, Theodore W. Felsch, 58, vice president and cashier of the Lemay Bank and Trust Company, died of heart disease at Alexian Brothers Hospital. Felsch, who lived at 2624 South Kingshighway Boulevard, started in the banking business with the St. Louis Union Trust Company in 1899 as a messenger. In 1908 he went with the Southern Commercial Bank where he was employed until 1930 when he joined Lafayette National Bank and Trust Company. He became vice president and cashier of the Lemay Bank and Trust Company in 1939 when the Lafayette National Bank and the Lemay Ferry Bank were merged. He was survived by his widow, Mrs. Clara Flesch.

Official Bank Title(s)

1: Lafayette National Bank and Trust Company of Luxemburg, MO

Bank Note Types Issued

1929 Type 2 $5 bank note with printed signatures of T.W. Felsch, Cashier and Bernard L. Barhorst, President. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.ha.com

A total of $82,240 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1930 and 1935. This consisted of a total of 12,668 notes (No large size and 12,668 small size notes).

This bank issued the following Types and Denominations of bank notes:

Series/Type	Sheet/Denoms	Serial#s	Sheet Comments
1929 Type 2	5	1 - 8888
1929 Type 2	10	1 - 3780

Bank Presidents and Cashiers

Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1930 - 1936):

Presidents:

• John Philip Meyer, 1931-1931
• Bernard L. Barhorst, 1931-1935

Cashiers:

• Theodore W. Felsch, 1931-1935

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 Lemay, Missouri (Wikipedia)
• General information on Saint Louis County (Wikipedia)
• General information on Missouri (Wikipedia)

Sources

• 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
• Map of St. Louis County ca1869-1871
• Barns, C. R. (Chancy Rufus), ed., The Commonwealth of Missouri, a Centennial Record, St. Louis, Bryan, Brand & Co., 1877.