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The people of Cleveland County are a progressive, farsighted people, and in 1874, H. D. Lee and Jesse Jenkins organized a private bank known as J. Jenkins and Company. This was Cleveland County's first bank. This bank has operated continuously since 1874 and has now developed into The First National Bank of Shelby, one of the state's oldest banks. For many years this was the only bank in the territory between Charlotte and Asheville, an almost unbelievable fact to us now.
A few months after the organization of J. Jenkins and Company, B. Blanton was added to the firm. After J. Jenkins left the firm in 1879, S. J. Green joined the banking company and the name was changed to H. D. Lee & Company, Bankers. For several years the firm was operated under his name; and although Major Lee moved to Knoxville, Tennessee in 1888 the name was retained until 1895 when it was changed to B. Blanton & Company, Bankers. This firm was composed of Burwell Blanton and his two sons, Charles C. Blanton and George Blanton. It was at this time that Charles C. Blanton returned to Shelby from Meridian, Texas, where he had been in the banking business for eleven years, and George Blanton returned to Shelby from Virginia, where he had been in the sewing machine business; both returned to join their father in the banking firm.
May 3, 1903, the firm of B. Blanton & Company, Bankers, became a national bank with Charles C. Blanton as President; Major H. F. Schenck, Vice President; George Blanton, Cashier; and Forrest Eskridge, Assistant Cashier. The new firm name was The First National Bank of Shelby. George Blanton succeeded his brother, Charles C. Blanton, as President in 1937. Other Presidents have been George Blanton, Jr., who at the time he became president was the youngest president of a national bank in the country, Edgar Blanton Hamilton, and currently, Adelaide Austell Craver. All the chairmen of the Board of Directors to date have been descendants of Burwell Blanton. Currently Mr. Hamilton serves as Chairman Emeritus and Mrs. Craver serves as Chairman.
The original and main bank building has undergone many changes through the years. Modernized in the early 1960's, in 1999 the bank lobby was restored featuring the re-opening of the Palladian-style windows, with marble floors, cherry wood columns, teller counters and molding, just in time for the bank's 125th year celebration. The adjoining building was renovated and connected to the bank as a loan center and the trust department has new, expanded quarters and services. During this 125th year of operation, the bank made its first acquisition of another financial institution by purchasing First Carolina Federal Savings Bank, founded in Kings Mountain, with offices there and in Gaston County. The Bessemer City office was opened in December, 1999. In the spring of 2005 the bank opened two new offices. One office is in the Cramerton area of Gaston County and the other is in the Forest City area of Rutherford County. After these additions, the bank now has eleven full service offices, three deposit service branches and fourteen ATMs in Cleveland, Gaston and Rutherford Counties. New core software was also installed in 1999, readying the bank for the year 2000 and beyond. This software was designed to allow the bank to provide the most up-to-date customer service which includes PC Banking.
This ending seems an appropriate place to leave the story of First National Bank until more chapters of history can be made. Be assured "Your Hometown Bank", with a proud past, is looking forward in this new century to continuing its Mission Statement, "to provide quality, caring, personal service to all people."
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