New-York tribune., 1891-12-20

lnrs Bank IL is the greatest ihsn'u"'"
the kind in the United States, and' ehousa
the Bowery holds about Sl,o0O,ooo mort VI
deposits the old Bleecker-st bank does pus'"e''
with more people. II las, in rouhu nun
hers more than S36,000,00O belonging
ZIG. 600 depositors. IL has been In opera'ioh po"
over seventy-two years, and up to January io'i.
il had opened 62s,746 accounts, ana ToeSeu
altoecther from it's depositors $2Sl,i@a,ia4' "H0
Maid out az interest thereon Sal ,5fl,soo W.
In this State, according to the Banking De.
portments last report, there were on uhe u'oS "
Ellis vear 1o4 savings banks, holding $37A,669'-
972 so for I,477,sl9 depositors-the wages ., .no
toil.rs in most part. of the poor and lowiy OF the
Ind and only the brief span Of one human life
since the committee OF the New-York legislature
advised that bank clerk De assigieo :" '' ''
work for an extra allowance. 80 .
Savings banks began to spring up rapidly IN
the State after the organization Of the BANK ior
Savings In most instances they were the out
growth of benevolent societies or OF lndiViauai
nhlantbropy The frauds praotlsed on sailors az
that period were frequent and scandalous' Poor
lack avoided beirg shanghaied only to Ian
victim to harpies and thevish boarding-house
keeners II was ascertaned in 1928 that out o1 Z'oS
,ersons who made deposits in the Bank for savings
onlv forty-three were mariners. Impressed "iid'
this fact the friends of seamen, largely conhec'eo
with the American Seamen's Friend Society, tooK
measures to procure charter for a seamens saw
iups bank The great iron building at wall ana
Pearl SITS is the home Of the immensely weai'hy
institution thus founded. Its inst banking mouse
was q small room in the store OF Gu don DuoS'
tho treasurer. no q narrow flight of stairs at No.
lao Maiden Lane. The books were opened on
Nav II, 1929, and deposits were received between
12 o'clock and l D. m James ChaPpell, steve
dore, opened the first account. The privilege OF
depositinv was extended not only 10 captains, OIL
GERS and seamen in the Navy and merchant service.
and stevedores. The directors gave their services
free. and @ few Of them advanced the money 10
ft up the room and procure y set OF books.
From small beginnings, sometimes q. on,y .sone one
proportions Up to the first Of July, le9l, IL
had received on deposit S203,oo0,o0o, and now
has over 10000 open accounts, representing more
than $50, 100000. 1t has paid to depositcIs as
interest since 1929 over S2e,000,O00. Naiah
Taylor, a well-lSnown philanthropist was the hIst
president. Benjamin Strong ana Benlanlln NiaiS
the clearinghouse Of Brown Brothers & c.:
Lockwood DE Forest Moses il. Grinnell OF Grn-
nell, Minturn d. Co. Arson q. Phelps, OF Pheps,
Podgs oO feath shd Psr Hf TmSe TG S.
among the directors, twenty7siX in all, not one
of whom survives Six Of the trustees OF me
American Seamens Friend Society are at TINS
time connected with the bank as officers or
trustees They are William c. Sturgcs, the bank
president; William A. Booth, Horace Gray, Sharles
H. Trask, Daniel Barnes and Frederick otur9es.
Though no longer exclusively sailors DanK, 10
still has larger number Of mariners on It's books
than any other institution, about $500 OF lis de-
postOrs being seafaring men
The Bowery Savings Bank which has done
business at the old stand, two doors north OF
Grand-st., on the east side OF the Howery, since
the Legislature gave 1t charter In ioS4 s.vinas s
bank in this country-S47.1 ,o52, held By it for
lO7 ,44O depositors This bank was started soon
after the city had been scourged by the cholera, u
1882. The rayages Of disease were especlaiHiy paaiiy
homes Of the people Of the East Side, and their
suffering and poverty was In sharp contrast to
city, where savings banks had helped the people
amazingly in their time Of trouble. There was
no savings bank on the East Side, and only
State state-one asN the Brooklyn savings Bank in
Brooklyn, and one each at Albany, Troy, POugh-
keepsie and Rochester with three in this city.
the Ssamen's, chartered in 1929, and the Green
wioh, In Greenwich Village, chartered in 1888:
The large district on, the East Side north OF
shops and other great branches Of industry. were
located had no convenient place Of deposit for
the savings of an extensive population.
Legislature, and 90 little did they perceive the
extent and utility Of the new system, that the
original charter Of the Bowery Bank limited its
p' in five years. TSe original ncsrporators of the
Bowery Bank were Benjamin A. Brown, Anson
G. Phelps, David Cotheal, Z. H. Warner, William
jeremiah, James Mills, Andrew e. Wheeler
Francis Fickett, Reuben Munson, Hamilton Fish.
William f. Craft, John Wood, Frederick r Lee.
Coutant. Caleb BARTLETT. Joseph 4; Taylor, Isaac
L. varian, Jacob p; Bunting, William G. Wales.
Robert NJ Hartley William Lee, Henry G. Sperry.
Nicholas Schureman, Lambert Suydam George G.
Thomas. +. ID. Comstock, Samuel J. Willis, Peter
Gassner, Peter Pinckney, Jabesh Lovett, Samuel
Andreas, William J. McNeven, John ONeil, Smith
Ovutt, Luke Usher.
The Greenwich Savings Bank, one of these
oldtime savings institutions alive to the progress
of the age, is about 10 make its final move. lt
after one or two changes Of location it settled az
to the handsome srsu f nG
Sixtcenthet This building was designed
by the same architect, Robert w. Gibson.
who had charge of the erection Of the
st., and the stone is Of the same peculiar fecked
kind in each. John IIarsen Rhoades, the presi-
dent of the Greenwich Savings Banh. i director
Of the United States Trust Company, and Was
chairman of the Building Committee OF each in
stiGution, hence the similarity in the material
of these two new bank buildings. Though it be-
and has steadily increased its deposits. the Green
wich Bank Is far behind the Bowery's immense
business. The Greenwich has about 10000 de
positOrs for whom It holds S22.357, 900.
There is popular impression that these old
savings banks hold in their keeping vast sums
deposits made by people who go off and die or
forget to call for their money. Especially is it
the general belief that this is true of the Sea
mems Bank, for the hazards OF sailors life are
the greatest and people will believe that thou
sands Of luckless mariners. after putting away
small sum in their fsvorite savings bank. have
gone 10 sea and never returned to claim their
money. A Tribune reporter who made some in-
quires about these moneys, soon discovered that
the going presidents of the city savings banks
were exceedingly sensitive on this subject
Several times the Legislature has attempted to get
at these mysterious amounts and turn them over
to the Stale, but they have never succeeded,
though report concerning them is made once a
year to the State Ranking Department No Off.