Grace National Bank was a bank headquartered in New York, New York. It was established as local private bank by W. R. Grace and Company in 1914 to concentrate on business done in South America. On June 19, 1924, the Grace National Bank became a nationally chartered financial institution.[1] The bank operated from a head office in the Grace National Bank Building at 58-60 Water Street.
The founding president was J. Louis Schaefer, a vice-president at W. R. Grace and Company. He died in 1927 and was succeeded by Francis H. McKnight (1927-1933) then Chester R. Dewey. Other former presidents included Frank Comerford Walker.
Grace National Bank lost clients and deposits during the Great Depression of the 1930s but survived and began growing again in the post World War II era. In 1950, the bank earned the largest gross and net profit in its thirty-five-year history.[2]
In the 1960s, the bank struggled with stiff competition from large operations and on August 10, 1965, the Federal Reserve Bank gave its approval for the merger of Grace National Bank with the Marine Midland Bank (now HSBC Bank USA).[3]
References
edit- ^ "GRACE NATIONAL BANK.; Will Concentrate Its Activities In South America". The New York Times. 1924-06-20. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-02-16.
- ^ "'50 A RECORD YEAR AT GRACE NATIONAL; Bank Reports Largest Gross and Net Profits in 35 Years at Stockholders Meeting. Income Gain Was 18.22% Commercial Letters of Credit Volume Doubled as Result of Hostilities in Far East Upstate New York Albany Harverstraw Nanuet Sparkill Spring Valley Syracuse '50 A Record Year at Grace National Utica Actions on Long Island Far Rockaway Glen Cove Glen Head Riverhead Actions in Westchester New Rochelle White Plains Changes in New Jersey Elizabeth Haledon Newark New Brunswick Paterson Plain Princeton Railway Changes in Connecticut Bridgeport Hartford Stamford". The New York Times. 1951-01-10. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-03-19.
- ^ "Sale of the Grace National Bank Approved by Federal Reserve". The New York Times. 1965-08-11. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-02-16.