First State Bank of Montgomery
Montgomery, Montgomery County, Texas
Marker Inscription
One of first state banks in Texas. Chartered Dec. 11, 1906, it began operations in a frame building on lot south of here. Present building was finished 1908 and is now oldest existing commercial building in this once-thriving trade center. As the town's only bank, it served small farmers while cotton was king in area. Safe was once stolen and the vault still has scars from a robbery. Bank was voluntarily liquidated in 1934. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1934
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Chartered in 1906, this was among the earliest state banks in Texas, and its 1908 building still stands as the oldest commercial structure in a town that once thrived on the cotton trade. As the community's only bank it extended credit to small farmers, and its vault still bears scars from a long-ago robbery before the bank was voluntarily liquidated in 1934.
Why it matters
Small-town banks were the financial backbone of the cotton South, binding local farmers to the wider national economy.
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Themes & tags
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