Second National Bank, Meyersdale, PA (Charter 5801)
Second National Bank, Meyersdale, PA (Chartered 1901 - Open past 1935)
Town History
Meyersdale is a borough in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, on the Casselman River, 73 miles southeast of Pittsburgh. In the past, its chief industry was the mining of coal. Meyersdale is located along the Great Allegheny Passage, a multi-use recreational rail trail. At the 2010 census there were 2,184 people.
Meyersdale was first settled as early as 1776, but the growth of the town dates from the advent of the first railroad in 1871. Coal mining began in the next year. The borough was named for an early settler, Peter Meyers, a local farmer who was integral to the beginning of the town. Early names for Meyersdale included Meyers Mills and Dale City.
Meyersdale had three National Banks chartered during the Bank Note Era, and all three of those banks issued National Bank Notes.
Bank History
- Organized April 26, 1901
- Chartered May 7, 1901
- Opened for business May 27, 1901
- Bank was Open past 1935
The bank started business in a small building on the site of the present Naugle building, about where the McKenzie grocery was located in 1935. When old buildings were removed to make room for the new Naugle Block, the Second National Bank took quarters in a small frame structure where the Pennsylvania Electric Company's office was once located. It remained there until its own new building at the southwest corner of Center and Main Streets was completed. This splendid new bank building was started in 1909 and completed the following year. A public reception was held on March 10, 1010, and the handsome appointments and fittings of the new building were greatly admired and appreciated by the patrons of the bank and the general public. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.
Samuel A. Kendall established the Meyersdale Republican, August 16, 1900, and the Second National Bank about eight months later on April 22, 1901. Prominent organizers of the bank included Cyrus W. Truxal, the first President of the bank. He was one of Meyersdale's outstanding merchants and businessmen and under his guidance the bank forged ahead from its modest beginning in 1901, incorporating with $65,000 in capital. By the time of President Truxal's retirement in 1912, resources had grown to more than half a million dollars. Another of the organizers and an original director was Norman E. Miller, a leading merchant of Meyersdale. He was the bank's first Vice President and since 1912 its President. W.H. Habel was another organizer and member of the original board of directors. He succeeded N.E. Miller as Vice President. Squire Wm. B. Cook, John Stein, Wilson E. Walker, E.M. Berkley, Samuel S. Miller and Lewis A. Kretchman completed the first Board of Directors. E.M. Beachly was the first cashier of the bank.
The directorate changed in 1910 when there was added to its roster E.C. Kyle, long recognized as one of the county's outstanding businessmen; Perry C. Miller, a prosperous farmer of Summit Township; and another farmer, E.N. Walker, who succeeded to the position of his father, Wilson E. Walker, upon the latter's death. It was the custom of the bank to honor the son of a deceased director.
In 1908, the directors called J.H. Bowman, from the First National Bank of Stoystown, a bank he helped to found and successfully conducted for seven years, to accept the position of cashier of the Second National Bank of Meyersdale. That proved a wise move as evidenced by the fact that Mr. Bowman served over 27 years as cashier guiding the bank to about five times the amount of resources there when Mr. Bowman was placed in charge. Under Mr. Bowman's direction, the bank contracted for its modern new quarters. Later he was elected Vice President and served as the bank president for 20 years. He was succeeded by his son, R.H. Bowman in that post. In 1962 J.H. Bowman became chairman of the board, but passed away in July, just a few months later at 87 years of age.
In January 1933, the stockholders elected the following directors: Wm. P. Meyers, Perry C. Miller, N.E. Miller, E.N. Walker, Bruce Lichty, J.H. Bowman, W.H. Hable, Chas. E. Byrd, C.A. Phillips, and R.H. Bauman. The officers were N.E. Miller, president; W.H. Hable, vice president; J.H. Bowman, cashier and R.H. Bowman, assistant cashier.
The bank endured three cycles of depressions, yet never had missed a dividend. By the mid-1930s it still maintained $65,000 in capital, but had a surplus and undivided profits equaling almost three times its capital.
Gallatin Bank of Uniontown entered Somerset County in 1962 when it purchased the assets of the Second National Bank of Meyersdale. On Saturday, August 25th, Gallatin National took over operation of the Second National Bank of Meyersdale. This acquisition gave Gallatin new offices in Meyersdale and Salisbury. R.H. Bowman, formerly president of the Second National, would assist the management of the Meyersdale and Salisbury offices of Gallatin National and carry out the duties as liquidating agent of the old bank. Paul Malone, president of Gallatin National Bank, announced that Roy T. Chuck, assistant vice president, had been transferred to the Meyersdale office and would assume the duties as manager. Clark E. Weller, cashier of the Second National became an assistant cashier of Gallatin National. Miss Mary E. Miller also became an assistant cashier of the new bank. The remainder of the staff remained unchanged with Floyd Keefer, Miss Ruth Briskey, Mrs. Betty Lindeman, Mrs. Frances Clark, Mrs. Helen B. Putman, Miss Ruby Mittelstaedt, Miss Emma Jean Brocht, Mrs. Mary Elizabeth Hess, and Miss Anna Ruth Knepper in the Meyersdale office and Mrs. Edna Schrock and Mrs. Dixie Otto in the Salisbury office.
Official Bank Title(s)
1: The Second National Bank of Meyersdale, PA
Bank Note Types Issued
A total of $1,223,990 in National Bank Notes was issued by this bank between 1901 and 1935. This consisted of a total of 106,288 notes (80,404 large size and 25,884 small size notes).
This bank issued the following Types and Denominations of bank notes:
Series/Type Sheet/Denoms Serial#s Sheet Comments 1882 Brown Back 3x10-20 1 - 1530 1882 Date Back 3x10-20 1 - 6800 1882 Value Back 3x10-20 6801 - 10418 1902 Plain Back 3x10-20 1 - 8153 1929 Type 1 6x5 1 - 1608 1929 Type 1 6x10 1 - 1264 1929 Type 1 6x20 1 - 384 1929 Type 2 5 1 - 3948 1929 Type 2 10 1 - 1896 1929 Type 2 20 1 - 504
Bank Presidents and Cashiers
Second National Bank Presidents and Cashiers during the National Bank Note Era (1901 - 1935):
Presidents:
Cashiers:
- Eugene Milton Beachly, 1901-1907
- Josiah Hite Bowman, 1908-1935 NOTE: A featured biography is available
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 Meyersdale (Wikipedia)
- General information on Somerset County (Wikipedia)
- General information on Pennsylvania (Wikipedia)
Sources
- Meyersdale, PA, 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://bbdata.banknotehistory.com
- The Daily American, Somerset, PA, Wed., Jan. 11, 1933.
- The Republic, Meyersdale, PA, Thu., Mar. 28, 1935.
- The Daily Courier, Connellsville, PA, Fri., July 13, 1962
- The Republic, Meyersdale, PA, Thu., Aug. 30, 1962.
- The Daily American, Somerset, PA, Wed., Oct. 26, 1983.