First State Bank of Livingston
Livingston, Polk County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Early state bank of Texas. Organized in 1910 as Guaranty State Bank with H. D. Reynolds as the first president. L. F. Gerlach, second president, operated one of city's best-known stores. The descendants of J. L. Muller, third president, have served as leaders in the bank since 1910. Ollege Morrison, fourth president, owned Livingston Drug Company for many years. Miss May Andress, daughter of S. J. Andress (an organizer of the bank), was on board of directors longer than any other member. The bank took present name in 1925. This is third location.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Founded in 1910 as the Guaranty State Bank under president H.D. Reynolds, this Livingston institution took its present name in 1925. Its early leadership reads like a roster of the town's merchants and civic figures, from store owners to a druggist, with the Muller family serving as leaders since its founding. Now at its third location, it reflects the tight weave of banking and small-town commerce in early-twentieth-century Texas.
Why it matters
Local banks like this one were the financial backbone of small American towns, where the same families ran the store, the bank, and much of civic life.
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Related people
- · H.D. Reynolds
- · L.F. Gerlach
- · J.L. Muller
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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Founded in 1846 as the seat of Polk County on a hundred acres donated by Moses L. Choate, Livingston grew into the trade, education, and social hub for the sawmill towns and Trinity River boat landings around it — Sam Houston himself is said to have danced at the nearby Old Andress Inn in the early 1850s. Texas's only Indian reservation, home to the Alabama-Coushatta tribe, lies close by. Long anchored in ranching and timber, the area saw major oil and gas development after 1930.
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