Richmond National Bank, Richmond, ME (Charter 909)
Richmond National Bank, Richmond, ME (Chartered 1865 - Liquidated 1910)
Town History
Richmond is a town in Sagadahoc County, Maine. It is part of the Portland–South Portland–Biddeford, Maine metropolitan statistical area, situated at the head of Merrymeeting Bay. The population was 3,522 at the 2020 census. In 1860 the population was 2,739 declining to 1,858 by 1910.
Richmond is located adjacent to the 2,019 acre state-owned and managed Steve Powell Wildlife Management Area on Swan Island, a wildlife sanctuary and tourist area listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Swan Island is a major wildlife tourist attraction for the town, especially during the summer.
The tract of land which comprises Richmond and Gardiner was purchased in 1649 from the Abenaki Indians by Christopher Lawson. The site of Richmond, as well as neighboring Swan Island, is believed by historians to have served as a summer settlement for the Abenaki.
In 1719, Fort Richmond was built by the Province of Massachusetts Bay on the western bank of the Kennebec River where Richmond is located today. Named for Ludovic Stewart, 1st Duke of Richmond, the fort included a blockhouse, trading post, chapel, officers' and soldiers' quarters, all surrounded by a palisade. In 1722 during the Dummer's War, following the battle at Arrowsic, Maine, Fort Richmond was attacked in a three-hour siege by warriors from Norridgewock. Houses were burned and cattle slain, but the fort held. Brunswick and other settlements near the mouth of the Kennebec River were destroyed. The fort's defenses were enlarged in 1723. On August 19, 1724, a militia of 208 soldiers departed Fort Richmond under command of captains Jeremiah Moulton and Johnson Harmon, traveling up the Kennebec in 17 whaleboats to sack Norridgewock. Fort Richmond would be rebuilt in 1740, attacked by another tribe in 1750, then dismantled in 1755 when forts Shirley (also called Frankfort), Western and Halifax were built upriver.
Settled in 1725, the community was part of Bowdoinham when it was incorporated in 1762 by the Massachusetts General Court. In 1790, Revolutionary War veteran John Plummer was awarded a land grant on Plummer Road, where his son built the surviving house about 1810. The Embargo of 1807 crippled the port's economy, bankrupted merchants and created a recession which lingered through the War of 1812.
The town was set off and incorporated on February 10, 1823, taking its name from the old fort. Farms produced hay and potatoes. With the arrival of steamboats in the 1830s, Richmond boomed as a shipbuilding and trade center on the navigable Kennebec River estuary. Among the more important shipbuilders were T.J. Southard, also considered one of the town's "founding fathers".
Richmond had two National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, the First National Bank (Charter 662) and the Richmond National Bank (Charter 909) and both of those banks issued National Bank Notes.
Bank History
- Organized February 9, 1865
- Chartered March 18, 1865
- Succeeded Richmond Bank
- Liquidated August 1, 1910
In March 1853, a bill from the Senate to incorporate the Richmond Bank and to increase the capital stock of the Canal Bank, Portland, was read in the House.[1] On July 5, 1853, subscribers to the stock in the Richmond Bank were requested to meet in the Vestry in Richmond Village on Thursday, July 21, to choose directors and transact any business of the corporation. Lemuel Brown was secretary.[2] The following gentlemen were chosen directors: Wm. Patten, James C. Boynton, Jefferson Hathorn, C.B. Foster T.J. Southard, and Robert Spear. Wm. Patten was chose President and F.R. Theobald, cashier.[3]
On December, 31, 1864, the charter of the Richmond Bank was surrendered by a vote of its shareholders. The notice was filed with the secretary of State on January 2, 1865, and two years from this date its liability to redeem its bills would expire.[4]
In January 1870, stockholders of the Richmond National Bank elected the following directors: James M. Hagar, John B. Stuart, Parker M. Whitmore, Carlton Houdlette, and John T. Harward. James M. Hagar was elected president and F.R. Theobold, cashier.[5]
In January 1877, stockholders of the Richmond National Bank elected the following directors: James M. Hagar, F.R. Theobald, J.F. Harward, Parker M. Whitmore, and Carlton Houdlette. James M. Hagar was elected president and Wm. H. Stuart, cashier. Stockholders of the Richmond Savings Bank elected T.J. Southard, Levi Mustard, Wm. T. Hall, Chas. H. Southard, Daniel Tiffany, James Carney and Hatherly Randall, trustees. T.J. Southard was elected president; S.W. Jack, treasurer; and Wm. T. Hall, secretary.[6]
On Sunday, January 12, 1879, Capt. Francis R. Theobald of Richmond died at his home at the age of 78 years. In early life he followed the sea and was for many years engaged as master mariner in the merchant marine. He commanded the first ship built in Richmond, the Clyde, built in 1839, and many other vessels. He left the sea and was chosen cashier of the Richmond Bank where he served for 21 years. Since his resignation, he served as managing director of the bank until the time of his death. He left one son, Capt. George H. Theobald, one of the leading citizens and businessmen of Richmond.[7]
On Tuesday, January 11, 1910, officers elected were George H. Theobald, president; Wm. H. Stuart, cashier; George H. Theobald, Wm. H. Stuart, George R. Theobald, Samuel R. Goodwin, John H. Stuart, George C. Lovell, John Maxwell, directors.[8] In June 1910, a special meeting of stockholders of the Richmond National Bank was called for July 1st by President George H. Theobald to see if stockholders would vote to close up the affairs of the bank. Business depression in this town which formerly did much ship building was responsible for the prospective liquidation. The Richmond National was one of two banking institutions in town. Its capital stock was $96,000, surplus and undivided profits about $22,000 and deposits of about $53,000. William H. Stuart was cashier.[9]
Official Bank Title
1: The Richmond National Bank, Richmond, ME
Bank Note Types Issued
A total of $669,250 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1865 and 1910. This consisted of a total of 78,570 notes (78,570 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 3x1-2 1 - 2000 Original Series 4x5 1 - 2100 Original Series 3x10-20 1 - 2060 Original Series 50-100 1 - 325 Series 1875 3x1-2 1 - 1208 Series 1875 4x5 1 - 3418 Series 1875 3x10-20 1 - 1180 Series 1875 50-100 1 - 400 1882 Brown Back 4x5 1 - 5595 1882 Brown Back 50-100 1 - 594 1902 Red Seal 3x10-20 1 - 1040 1902 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 382
Bank Presidents and Cashiers
Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1865 - 1910):
Presidents:
Cashiers:
Other Known Bank Note Signers
- No other known bank note signers for this bank
Bank Note History Links
- Richmond National Bank, Richmond, ME History (NB Lookup)
- Sagadahoc County, ME Bank Note History
- Maine Bank Note History (BNH Wiki)
Sources
- Richmond, ME, 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
- ↑ Portland Press Herald, Portland, ME, Fri., Mar. 11, 1853.
- ↑ Eastern Times, Bath, ME, Thu., July 7, 1853.
- ↑ Eastern Times, Bath, ME, Thu., Aug. 18, 1853.
- ↑ The Times Record, Brunswick, ME, Fri., Feb. 10, 1865.
- ↑ Kennebec Journal, Augusta, ME, Wed., Jan. 19, 1870.
- ↑ Kennebec Journal, Augusta, ME, Wed., Jan. 24, 1877.
- ↑ The Times Record, Brunswick, ME, Thu., Jan. 16, 1879.
- ↑ Sun-Journal, Lewiston, ME, Wed., Jan. 12, 1910.
- ↑ Kennebec Journal, Augusta, ME, Wed., June 8, 1910.