St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-07-06


/ the Bank Note Reporter and Counter
! felt DetectOr. issued monthly a. 81 per
/ year. But. by the way, even the retail
merchants had 10 intrench themselves
} behind this safeguard, and were happy
] if they did not lose from 3 to 10 per cent
! OF moneys received by them, even with
| its protection: for there were countless
! banks of issue. the value of whose cur
Tency was constantly changing. There
were state banks, county banks, city
| banks, incorporated company banks,
banks Of firms and banks of individuals.
Every state had its own banking laws,
and their tendency was, in every case,
| to enc0uragethe opening OF new banks.
Under such circumstances no man could
distinguish good money from bad, nor
Tecollect the discount eXacted on their
respective currency. At the same time
eOunterfeiters abOunded everywhere.
but particularly in the heavilYwooded
regions of Ohio, Indiana Illinois and
Michigan.
The St. Paul city directory of 1855
gives the following list of banks and
BANKERS in the city at that date. viz:
BOrup & Cakes, Third street, east of
jackson; c. II. Parker. ST. Anthony
street, now West Third; a. Y. Brown,
st. Anthony street, near Washington;
Mackubin d Edgerton, Windsor hotel,
st. Anthony and Eagle streets: Truman
NJ. Smith. corner Third and Minnesota:
Brown u Fletcher, brick row, corner of
Third and Minnesota; Rice, HOllins-
head IL Becker, st. Anthony, near Wash
ingtUn.
OF those whose names appear in this
list, all except MessrS. Smith.
Becker and EdgertOn, have. we be-
lieYe, passed away. bOTup and
1 Cakes died IN this city, having
remained IN business up TO the time
of their decease. Parker is believed to
be dead, but we have been unable to
find any one who could tell certainly
what became of him. \. Y. Brown
went South during the war. and was
last seen by the writer in the city of
Richmond after its capitllation. We
understand that he died in Virginia or
Maryland. Charles Mackubin died
number of years ago in his home in
! ST. Paul. His son is still one of the
I business men Of the city. MI. Edger-
ton, as is well known. remains with US
! yet, and is president Of the Second Ma
tiOnal bank. Truman NJ. Smith, with
many ups and downs, remained a citizen
of ST Paul up to 1889, when he removed
I to California, where he acquired consid-
cradle property. which, advancing rap
! idly in value, made him wealthy man
again. Few men have passed through
such reYerses as did Mr.. Smith while re-
siding in st. Paul. One of its weaithiest
men and leading financiers at one time,
and soon after with difficulty succeed
| ing in keeping the wolf from the door
| by constant and severe labor. May his
/ successes in California continue during
/ the remainder of his life. We have
! been unable TO obtain any infor-
nation as to what became of
| MeSsrs. Brown and Fletcher. Ed
mund Rice's history is too well
! known to need recapitulation. The ad-
vance in property soon after the war re-
! lieVed him from difficulties in which
! he became involved by the disasters
! of 1857. and after being hOnOred with
! several municipal Offices near the close
/ of his life he had the qualification Of
! being elected a member of congress,
where. he served his term with credit to
| himself and his constituents. w. II.
| HOIlinshead died here some fifteen or
/ twenty years ago, and one or more of
| his children are still living in the city.
[ The remaining member of that firm. Mr..
! Becker. was the first president of the
! ST. Paul & Pacific Railroad company,
and is now one of the members of the
! state board Of railroad commissioners.
| He Is very highly esteemed, both as a
/ man and officer. The directory tells US
I that the bank capital employed by these
| firms aggregated S3,596.00
/ The following years directory indi-
Gates that all of the above-named
! bankers, except Messrs. Borup u
| Cakes, had retired from the business;
/ but this is evidently a mistake. for
! MessrS Mackubin q Edgerton, T. NJ
! Smith and Rice, Hollinshead q Becker
are known TO have continued in it,
and. indeed, increased their bank
! ing facilities. The 1855 directory
/ gives a list containing the follow
/ ing additional names. tO-wit: BidWelIS
/, Exchange bank, William L. Banning 4
! Co. William Il. Marshall 81 Co., Meyer
/ q Willius. d. c. Taylor Il Co.: Irvine.
! Stone * Finley, and j. Jay Knox & Co.
In the 1851 directory Banker IL Beall,
! William Brewster. Caldwell, Whitney Il
| Co., and Lyman C. Dayton are added to
| the list Of banks and bankers. Bid
! wells Exchange bank is changed to Ira
! BIdwell d Son, and the Banning firm
| drops the Co" making il appear that
! William Banning was alone. 1t Is prob
able that these and some other discrep-
ancies between the two lists are due to
! careleSsnesS Oh the part of the directory
! canYasSeTs. for il Is certain that Mar
! shall q Co., whose name is dropped,
was still in business III 1857. and the
/ firm name again appears in the list OF
1859. In the latter year, notwlth-
! standing
The Financial Crash
of 1857. the number of firms appears to
! have increased by the addition of
Messrs. Dana & White, Edgerton Il Co.,
/ J. r. Madison, Parker, Paine Il Berry
| and Pease. Chalfant q Co.
OF the firms named as III the business
/ in 1857, Messrs. Bidwell, Banning, Mac
kubin & EdgeTtOn, I. NJ. Smith, Mar
! shall & Co. d. c. Taylor. and Meyer x
/ Willius are also found in the list Of
! 1853, but Irvine. Stone x Mccormick
are not again mentioned in connection
/ with this line Of business. Mr.. Irvine
John r. is mentioned, but as partner
IN a grocery firm. He was still wealthy.
however, so far as the possession of real
| estate could contribute TO make him,
but, like many others of the prosperous
! pioneers, was LAND poor" The shrink
/ age in property values was. not
only ruinous, but land could not
be sold even at the reduced
| prices. and Mr.. Irvine did not live long
! enough TO enjoy the advances in its
! value which he predicted would come
in time. He lett his family. who are
| still in the city, in comfortable circum-
| stances. His partner. J. NJ. Stone, is,
/ We believe. dead, aud Finley Meteor
| mick, the other member of the firm, is
! bO0kkeeper al the reform school. Al
though not favored by fortune in the