City Bank of Richmond
1109 East Main Street Built, 1870 Demolished, probably 1973
[RVCJ03] — City Bank of Richmond, occupying the left half of the building
Another lost bank from the heart of the financial district.
[RVCJ03] — interior view
The State banks doing a commercial business exclusively are the State Bank of Virginia, the City Bank and the Citizens of Richmond. [RVCJ03]
The City Bank of Richmond, 1109 E. Main street, was chartered in 1870 to do an insurance as well as banking business, and was originally called the Mechanics and Merchants Savings Bank. This charter was amended in 1872, and its name changed to what it is at present; and again amended in 1876, so as to provide for a banking business exclusively.
(VCU) — 1889 Baist Atlas Map of Richmond — Plate 1
It has experienced a remarkable and yet substantial growth, especially in the last three or four years, during which its loans and discounts. deposits and other evidences of development, have increased fully fifty per cent. It had at the time of its statement last available for this publication, July 12th, 1892, total resources of $1,245,000, embracing loans and discounts of $1,013,000, and cash items and due from banks and bankers, $230,000.
[RVCJ03] — City Bank of Richmond president, Colonel William. H. Palmer
The deposits with it at the same time aggregated $740,000. It has $400,000 capital stock and a $90,000 surplus fund. It is the depositary of the city of Richmond. Its president is William H. Palmer, president also of the Virginia Fire and Marine Insurance Company; its vice-president, E. B. Addison, of Allison & Addison, manufacturers of fertilizers; and its cashier is J. W. Sinton, who has been in the banking Inisiness for fifteen years—for eight years of that time with this institution.
[RVCJ03] — City Bank of Richmond cashier, J. W. Sinton
The directors, besides Messrs. Palmer and Addison, are Moses Millhiser, of M. Millhiser & Co., wholesale dry goods; George W. Anderson, of G. W. Anderson & Son, carpets and furnishings; James T. Gray, shipper of leaf tobacco; J. N. Boyd, dealer in leaf tobacco; S. H. Hawes, coal dealer; A. L. Holliday, ex-judge of the Chancery Court of the city of Richmond ; J. W. Beveridge, grocer; L. D. Cardoza, retired merchant; William Josiah Leake, ex-judge of the Chancery Court of the city of Richmond ; E. T. D. Meyers, president of the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad; N. W. Nelson, retired merchant ; and W. R. Trigg, president of the Richmond Locomotive and Machine Works. [RVCJ93]
November 2018 — showing former City Bank of Richmond location at 1109 East Main Street
That’s quite the laundry list of Richmond businessmen, some of whom have been covered in other posts on this Tumblr. Quite fascinating actually to see the incestuous overlap between firms. One wonders if Messrs. Hawes or Trigg ever had to fret about liquidity for their enterprises. Trigg himself was not only involved with the railroads but also the frontman for Trigg Shipyard, which briefly built boats for the U. S. Navy on Chapel Island near Great Shiplock Park.
(Rocket Werks RVA Postcards) — Sixth & Broad Street branch
As for City Bank of Richmond, their story got complicated. Like so many of their neighboring competitors, it merged with the State Bank (see the Baist map above) in 1922, which then merged with Planters National Bank in 1926. Crestar, incorporated in Virginia in June 1962 acquired a majority of stock in a number of Virginia banks including State-Planters Bank of Commerce & Trusts, which was then merged with SunTrust in 1998. (Style Weekly)
As for the building itself, it likely perished during the creation of the First & Merchants National Bank Building in 1973, like Liverpool & London, & Globe, and others.
(City Bank of Richmond is part of the Atlas RVA! Project)
Sources
[RVCJ03] Richmond, Virginia: The City on the James: The Book of Its Chamber of Commerce and Principal Business Interests. G. W. Engelhardt. 1903.
[RVCJ93] Richmond, Virginia: The City on the James: The Book of Its Chamber of Commerce and Principal Business Interests. G. W. Engelhardt. 1893.