The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1905-02-07
ILLINOIS ploEEER BANKING

banking in Illinois taken from IA
History of Banking In the United
States" by John Jay Knox, for seven
teen years deputy comptroller and
comptroller of the currency. may be
of interest 10 Cairo readers
THE history of the early banks of
Illinois is pretty much the same as
that of the banks of all the Western
country, the development OF which
was contemporary with that of Hin
OILS. For the most part these pioneer
financial institutions were founded
for the accommodation of the dream
ing SPECTATORS of the new territory,
who foresaw the coming greatness of
the future state. but waose impracti-
cal minds were not capable of com
putting the amount of labor and time
necessary 10 bring about the results
they so confidently expected. and
which really came in maryelously
brief period of time. Pre-
yious to the war of 1912. there was no
occasion, practical or fanced, for a
banking institution in Illinois. The
early French settlers were communis
tic in their charac' er. They were
founded by the trading companies
and the missionaries, and they
traff cked with no one but the Indians
and the parent settlements along the
Nil sissppi Tle trade was confined
to he pelts of wild animals, and by
these were measured the value OF
the few commodities purchased. II
was not until the settlers from the
east commenced 10 come into the
country tina a demand for money was
created, and this demand was based
largely upon the desire TO speculate
upon the growth of the new state
At this time the only cur
rency in circulation in the territor
was that which lad been pad 10 the
Illinois volunteers, but this was suf-
licient to give he people an extrava
CANT notion of the utility of BAN
no es.
"In 1919 bank was started at
Shawneetown and three years later Z
hecawe an INCORPORATED bank by =
special act of the Territorial Al sem
BIZ. The law ineorporatinf
the bank provided that its capt.
ock should net exceed 100000 t.
be DIV ded no shares OF one hundre
dollars each, one third thereof to re
main open 10 be subscribed by The
Legislature. Az soon as $4,000 was
cubrcribed end $4,000 actually pale
in the bank was permitted to cor
mence business and issue notes
Following the Incorporation Ct tic
Shawnee.own bank, the legislature
at a special session held the following
year. Incorporated three add toina
banks. The fir I of these was Tho
President Directors and Company o.
the Bank of Edwardsville. whose
charter was granted upon petition of
Benjamin Stephenson, John Mckee
and others.
The President Directors am
Company of the Bank of Kaakaskia'
was incorporated under a similar sta
tu,e. but provili ion was made that
It's subscriptions must be paid in
e Their gold or silver. The specie sui
scrip len requirement made 1t impos
aible to secure the requi lite invest
ments and the bank never did an
bu. in ess.
A Phantom Bank Chartered.
"The Incorporation of the 'Presi
dent, Directors and Company of the
Bank of Cairo was the licensing Of
a chiwevical scheme for the bu ldinf
II great western metropolis al he
junction of the Mississippi and Obj
rivers. The hank was to be establish.
ed on the revenuec derived from thu
llle of town loots and. of course
nothing came of IT, TIE owners o.
tho land, TO whom the charter for he
CITY and Bank of Cairo was giver
we're john G.. Comyges Thomas II
uarris. Thomas F. Herbert, Charles
Slade., Shradrach Bond, Michael
Jones, Warren Brown, Edward Hum
nhreys ana Charles w Hunter In
1896 a company which had come mo
poss Is ion of the wreck of the old
corporation. started a bank at Kas
kaslia under the charter of the Cairo
Bank, but he bank was not long In
existence
TIE banks at Shawneetown and Ed
wardsville continued to do busin ess
for several years, but finally failed
TIE last named hank clio ed It's door
IN 1919. and the government. which
Nal used r. IS Depository for lapd
Office funds. lost some $4,000. The
Shawneetown bank Struggled along
and continued to redeem is papers
until 1921. In 1923 il was compelled
to close up its business, but /, man
aged to make a -et'lement with its
creditors Cpd saved It's charter. When
I've 6 ate pank Of illinois was estab
lished the charter Of the Shawnee
town institution vas revived and ex-
tended for twenty years from Jan. /,
1897. the date of aiitory expiration of
the old charter. The sub
seauent his cry Of the hank is con
uec. ell with that Of the state bank
When itr business was finally closed
ND the old bank building came into
possession Of Governor Joel A. Mat
teson. who started a bank there In