IBAT Member First State Bank & Trust Celebrates 110 Year Anniversary

Printer-friendly Version

On February 16, 2012 the First State Bank & Trust of Carthage, Texas will celebrate 110 years of service to the people of Carthage and Panola County, Texas.

First State Bank & Trust was founded in 1902 as Merchants and Farmers National Bank with capital of $25,000. The founder was R.E. Trabue. Thomas Boren was President, L.J. Smith was VP and Cashier and 3 other employees opened its doors on February 27, 1902. The deposits at the end of the year totaled $6,021.

The bank changed its name in 1910 to Guaranty State Bank. The reason for the change was to take advantage of the guaranty fund which was developed by the State of Texas to ensure the deposits of banks after the Panic of 1907. This was a forerunner of FDIC Insurance, which came into being in 1933 by the act of Congress. The original amount of FDIC insurance for individual accounts was $5,000 per account. The program remains in place today with coverage for individual accounts up to $250,000. Mr. Trabue sold the bank to Mr. R.P. (Pink) Ash in 1910. Bank deposits at the end of that year exceeded $93,000.

In 1923 Guaranty State Bank reported deposits of $410,733. The bank was headed by President R.P. Ash, Vice President A.A. Jordan, Cashier Horace R. Allison, and Assistant Cashier Mrs. Berna Ash Reeves. Mrs. Reeves was Mr. Ash’s daughter and served on the Board of Directors along with Mr. Allison, Mr. Jordan, Mr. Ash, J.M Carnes, Lee Ferguson and J.H. Wooten. In 1925 the bank name changed to First State Bank. Mr. A.L. Lipscomb, Sr. served as interim President until 1927 when B.F. Payne, Jr. purchased the bank from Mr. Ash. B.F. Payne, Jr. was elected President in 1928 and served in that capacity until 1960 when he was succeeded by his nephew, Milton L. Payne. B.F. Payne continued to serve as Chairman of the Board until his death in 1963. Milton Payne served as President until 1984 when he became Chairman of the Board. He served as COB and President until 1984. W.C. Applegate succeeded him as President and served until 1988. Milton served as COB and President from 1988 to 1990.

In 1990 Jim Payne was elected Vice Chairman of the Board and Lynn Vincent was elected President. In 1998, Jim was elected Chairman of the Board and Milton Sr. Chairman. Milton and Jim have served the bank a total of 110 years (Milton-65, Jim-45), which coincides with the 110th Anniversary in February 2012.

Deposits of First State Bank at the end of the decade of the 30’s exceeded $346,000.

The decade of the 40’s impacted business across the nation and created personnel vacancies because many employees were involved in the war effort through military service overseas. The wartime directors included Horace Allison, John C. Brown, Mrs. Nell Owens, B.F. Payne and Mary Payne. Dan Shaw’s wife, Nettie, served as an assistant cashier and director while Dan served overseas. Deposits at the end of the decade were $2,762,614.

In the decade of the 50’s, oil and gas exploration created the opportunity for continued development of local businesses. Two long time employees began their service to the bank in the decade: Welton Sanders (1955) and Lynn Vincent (1957). Mr. Vincent currently serves as President and is a member of the Board of Directors.

Foster Murphy, son-in-law of B.F. Payne, Jr., joined the bank’s board in 1959 and continues in that capacity today. His son, David Murphy, currently serves as Vice President and director.

In 1963 the bank added a trust department and changed its name to First State Bank & Trust Co. The deposits at the end of the decade reached a record $12,153,187.

First State Bank & Trust Co. was given the opportunity for a new location when a butane truck caught on fire and burned several businesses on West Panola Street in the fall of 1968. Construction of a new building began in 1971 and the bank moved to its present location in March 1972. Employees J.R. Duke and Gene Giles joined the bank in this decade. Mr. Duke retired in 2009 as an officer but continues to serve as a director. Mr. Giles currently serves as Sr. Vice President of Lending and is also a director. Deposits at the end of the 70’s were $39,064,618.

A new drive-in on N. St. Mary Street was added in 1983 due to increased demands for drive-in service. Deposits at the end of the year reached $72,205,976. The first ATM was added in 1983.

Decades of the 90’s began with a 12,000 square foot addition to the building built in 1972. This addition included the first escalators in Panola County. Deposits at the end of the decade totaled $188,638,221.

As the bank entered the 21st Century, the pace of change continued with the development of debit cards. The bank celebrated 100 years of service to the community in 2002. The use of computers has driven banks to move forward and to offer new and exciting opportunities for our customers. The latest addition to expand our services to the people of Panola County include a new 3,600 sq. ft. convenience bank at 120 W. Panola. It includes 3 commercial lanes, 10 drive-in lanes and a new ATM in March of 2009. The present directors of the bank are Dwain Brady, John W. Cooke, J.R. Duke, Tom Escoe, Gene Giles, David Murphy, Foster Murphy, Jim Payne, Milton Payne, Kevin Smith, Charles Thomas, Lynn C. Vincent, and Travis Wall.

Deposits as of December 31, 2011 were $383,717,274 and the total capital for the same period was $65,141,422.

As we approach our 110th anniversary, we are more aware than ever that our success as a banking institution has been made possible by the loyal customers of Carthage and Panola County.