Marshall County History: MC first bank

  • The original Cotton National Bank building that was moved from Oakland to Madill in 1901. Courtesy photo
    The original Cotton National Bank building that was moved from Oakland to Madill in 1901. Courtesy photo
  • The original First National Bank. (Courtesy photo)
    The original First National Bank. (Courtesy photo)
  • First National Bank after it was moved to its permanent location at US70 and Lillie Blvd. (Courtesy photo)
    First National Bank after it was moved to its permanent location at US70 and Lillie Blvd. (Courtesy photo)

The first bank to be formed in what is now known as Marshall County, was the Cotton National Bank of Oakland, Indian Territory. The bank was established in May of 1900. It was housed in a small wooden building in downtown Oakland. The initial capital stock of the Cotton National Bank was $25,000.

Later in 1900, the St. Louis-San Francisco (Frisco) Railway began constructing a rail line from Sapulpa to Denison, Texas and beyond. That rail line bypassed Oakland to the east by a mile or two. The bypassing of Oakland led W.N. Taliaferro, his brother D.B. and Judge Isaac Overton Lewis to form the new town of Madill.

On January 29, 1901, the Cotton National Bank of OaklandwasmovedtoMadill and rechartered as the First National Bank of Madill. With the change of name and directors, the capital stock of the bank was increased to $50,000. The President was D.B. Taliaferro.

When the bank moved from Oakland to Madill, it was not just a figurative move, the entire bank building itself was moved. Since the building was a small wooden structure, it was placed on a horse drawn wagon and hauled to the new town.Thebankwasplacedon a back lot on the north side of thesquare,facingnorthalong E. Overton Street.

Shortly after the move, construction on the new brick bank building began. The beautiful, ornate twostory building was located on the northwest corner of the square along Second Street and the Square.

In June of 1918, The Marshall County National Bank was founded by a group of local businessmen. The first president of the Marshall County National Bank was W. H. Colby, a long-time grocery store operator in Madill.

The Marshall County National Bank was opened in the new McMillan Building located at the southwest corner of First Street (Highway 70) and Lille Boulevard. The Marshall County National Bank opened with a capital stock of over $66,000. John Landram was the bank cashier. Landram had previously been the cashier of the First National Bank of Kingston.

OnDecember31,1926,the FirstNationalBankofMadill and the Marshall County National Bank merged. The name of the new bank was “The First National Bank In Madill.” When the merger occurred, thebankconsolidated its operation to the location of the Marshall County National Bank in the McMillan Building.

At the time of the merge, D. B. Taliaferro owned the McMillan Building and he traded the building for stock in the newly merged bank. Taliaferrothenbecamepresident of the new bank. He had been the president of the old First National Bank of Madill. JoeHannan,W.H.Colby and Landram were elected Vice-Presidents. Felix Simmons was named the cashier.

In April of 1931, the First National Bank In Madill purchased and absorbed the FirstNationalBankofKingston. The Kingston Bank was then closed leaving Kingston without a bank. With that consolidation, Bruce May, who was the President of the Kingston National Bank was named a Vice-President of the First National Bank In Madill.

Burglary: Dacota Purtle, a 29-year-old male from Kingston was arrested on December 15 for Second-Degree Burglary. Priors for First-Degree Rape, Failure to Register as a Sex Offender, Possession of CDS and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia were found in an online search.

Assault: Shawn Clontz, a 33-year-old female from Kingston was arrested on December 20 for Assault and Battery. A prior for In October of 1933, W. H. Colby purchased controlling interest in the bank from out-of-townownersreturning the bank to local owners. In 1964, the bank was the first in the county to offer free, “personalized” checking. The First National Bank In Madill then operated under that name until November 19,1984,whenthename was changed to the First National Bank of Marshall County. Then on March 31, 1989, the First National Bank of MarshallCountywasmerged into the BancFirst organization. The bank continues under that flag today.