Kearney Banks Through Thick & Thin - 1926-1947

Much information has been collected about the “Boom” period businesses in Kearney
What about a more recent time – the Depression of the 1930’s?

Compared banks in Kearney
        1926 – Prosperous times
        1939-1940 – End of depression
        1947 – Back to prosperous times; air base still open

1926 - Five Banks in Kearney

 
1. City National Bank – 2033 Central
        Organized in Dec 1888; did business in a small wood building on corner of 21st & Central
        Summer 1889 built a 3 story building on that site
        Closed May 14, 1927 after 39 years in business

2. Farmers State Bank – 2119 Central
        Organized in 1890 at corner of Central & Railroad [in the Lowe building, John G Lowe was pres.]
        1898 moved to the Opera House for more space
        1900 moved to 2119 Central to a new building
        (1931 Sponsored broadcast of livestock market on KGFW)
        June 19, 1933 after 2 weeks trying to reorganize, the bank was taken over by the State Banking Department

                 after 43 years in business

        Safe deposit boxes were transferred to the Fort Kearney State Bank

        [Difficult to track because so many small towns had a bank with the same name]

3. Central National Bank – 2032 Central – [across the street from the City National Bank]
        Dec 5, 1902 Plans in the works for opening in Jan
            Feb. 4, 1903 - Opened in Downing-Bartlett Bldg at 21 & Central.
        May 1927 – Closed & taken over by a receiver after 25 years in business
            Apr 1931 – Bank building and furnishing were for sale.
                By Sept 20, 1932 they had moved out.
                [Took over 5 years to completely close out this bank.]

4. Guaranty Trust Co. – 5 E 21st
        Organized before 1909;
        Closed after 1940 but before 1947
        [Not included in news about banks]

5. American State Bank –
        Opened in May 1917 in Porterfield Building at 23rd & Central
        Dec 1918 purchased the Henline Building on corner of 22nd & Central – 2122 Central
                Henline Drug store moved to another location.
        Remodeling completed, they moved in Sat. May 10, 1919.
                Men received cigars, women got carnations.
                2nd floor was used by doctors
                3rd renovated into rooms; used by girls attending the Normal School due to a shortage of dormitory space.
        July 27, 1929 – Bank closed after only 11 years
        Bank officials announced it would reorganize and reopen in 2 weeks.

        All the banks that closed in Kearney attempted to reorganize

        Dec 8, 1929 – Bank did reopen
                Immediately changed its name to Fort Kearney State Bank
                    (Interior had been redecorated)
        Building continued to be called the American Bank Building for a while.

Kearney Banks Take Action
        From 1927 to 1933 there were just 2 banks, 4 had closed but only 1 had been able to reopen
        Banks across the state and nation were closing;
        The economy was worsening;
                Jobs were disappearing
                Some men resorted to robbery – bank robbery

Sept 1930 – “Kearney Banks Take Action Against Bandits
                            Five Hundred Dollars for Dead Bandit
        Farmers State Bank and Fort Kearney State Bank have agreed to pay a cash reward of $500.00 for any bank bandit killed in the act of robbing either bank or killed in the immediate pursuit after such robbery.

This step was taken because of the prevalence of bank holdups in Nebraska of late, and as a preventative measure to keep bandits away from Kearney.”

Three Kearney policemen equipped with sawed off shotguns were assigned to patrol the two block area where the banks were located.

1939-1940 – End of Depression, beginning of WWI
Kearney had two Banks
 

1. Guaranty Trust Co – 7 E 21st
        Was 5 E 21, may have been renumbered for some reason over the years.
        Disappeared sometime before 1947

2. Fort Kearney State Bank – Reorganized from the American State Bank in December 1929
        Continued to do business in the same building for 2 years, until November 1931
        Moved to 2033 Central, home of the City National Bank
        Prospered during the war period

1947

Kearney still had two banks
 

1. Fort Kearney State Bank – 2033 Central
        Evolved as Fort Kearney National Bank and then 1st National of Kearney sometime before 1960

2. Platte Valley State Bank –

        Opened in January 1944 in the Federal Annex Bldg, 2223 Central
        Continues in operation today

And also………..
Aug 26, 1919 – Auto Smashed into Building
        Gomer Patrick was suing Robert Sample for damages. About midnight July 24 Gomer Patrick was driving up Central and ran into “a large cottage marooned in the middle of the street.” He said that “no danger signal of any nature was affixed to the misplaced building” and his car was badly damaged. Robert Sample was a house mover and had not placed roper danger lights on the building.