American Fletcher National Bank
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Banking, Financial services |
| Predecessor | Fletcher Trust Company, American National Bank |
| Founded | 1839 in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States |
| Fate | Merged into Bank One Corporation in 1987 |
| Headquarters | Indianapolis , United States |
Area served | Indiana, United States |
Key people | Evan Woollen Jr. (president after 1954 merger), Frank E. McKinney Sr., Frank E. McKinney Jr. (president and chairman) |
| Products | Banking, credit cards (AFNB Charge Card) |
| Parent | American Fletcher Corporation (until 1987), then Banc One Corporation |
American Fletcher National Bank, established in Indianapolis in 1839, was ultimately incorporated into Bank One and subsequently Chase Bank. The 1954 consolidation of Fletcher Trust Company with American National Bank resulted in the creation of American Fletcher National Bank and Trust Company, which quickly became either the largest or second largest banking institution in Indiana, frequently exchanging the leading position with local competitor Indiana National Bank. From the mid-1950s through the late 1980s, American Fletcher National Bank and Trust consistently ranked alongside Indiana National Bank and Merchants National Bank as one of the top three banks in Indianapolis. Its parent entity, American Fletcher Corporation, stood among Indiana’s three foremost bank holding companies, contending with INB Financial Corporation (previously Indiana National Corporation) and Merchants National Corporation.
During the 1960s, American Fletcher was distinguished for its ownership of the exclusive 222 telephone prefix within the 317 area code, specifically the number 222-AFNB (2362). This line provided automated updates on time, weather, and other announcements. Although this service was discontinued by Bank One in 1993, it was revived five years later by Indianapolis radio station WIBC, which repurposed it as a weather forecast hotline at 222-2222. WIBC maintained this offering for more than 25 years until it ceased operations in February 2024.
History
American Fletcher National Bank and Trust Company (AFNB) was formed on December 31, 1954, through the merger of Fletcher Trust Company and American National Bank, becoming Indiana’s second largest bank at that juncture. Evan Woollen Jr., previously president of Fletcher Trust, assumed leadership of the newly merged institution. The July 31, 1959 acquisition of Fidelity Bank & Trust Company propelled AFNB to become the largest bank in Indiana. Frank E. McKinney Sr., who had led Fidelity since 1935, succeeded Woollen as head of AFNB following Woollen’s passing shortly before the merger was finalized.
American Fletcher was among Indiana’s pioneers in issuing bank credit cards, launching its proprietary AFNB Charge Card in May 1966. By early 1967, this card was integrated into the regional Midwest Bank Card System, an early form of what would become Mastercard. The bank also licensed its charge card to other Indiana financial institutions such as Merchants National Bank of Terre Haute, thereby extending its reach beyond Marion County.
American Fletcher Corporation
The creation of American Fletcher Corporation (AFC) in 1968 established a holding company structure for American Fletcher National Bank, facilitating acquisitions beyond its original county once state laws permitted such expansion. At that time, American Fletcher operated 41 branches exclusively within Indianapolis and Marion County. New legislation enabling limited cross-county acquisitions and branching took effect on July 1, 1985.
Frank E. McKinney Jr., son of honorary chairman Frank E. McKinney Sr., became president in 1972 and chairman in 1973. Under his leadership, the bank pursued substantial growth through acquisitions as regulatory constraints relaxed.
AFC’s initial expansion outside Marion County occurred in April 1984 with the purchase of Shelby National Bank’s assets in Shelby County from the FDIC for $4.5 million; this acquisition was immediately integrated into AFNB operations.
Following the enactment of banking laws effective July 1985 that permitted holding companies to own multiple banks across county lines, AFC announced several acquisitions: Union Bank and Trust Co. of Franklin (Johnson County) for $10.2 million; First American National Bank of Plainfield (Hendricks County) for $14.1 million; and Carmel Bank & Trust Co. located in Hamilton County.
The Union Bank purchase was completed in December 1985 after Union had opened a branch in Columbus (Bartholomew County), an area AFC could only enter via acquisition due to restrictions preventing new branch openings by large banks.
In February 1986, AFC further broadened its footprint by acquiring Citizens Northern Company—the parent company of Citizens Northern Bank based in Elkhart—for $5 million. This move positioned AFC to compete with major regional banks originating from Detroit and Cleveland. That same month also saw completion of AFC’s acquisition of First American National Bank of Plainfield.
Banc One Indiana
In May 1986, American Fletcher Corporation (AFC) revealed plans for a stock merger valued at $597.3 million with Columbus-based Banc One Corporation. Following this agreement, American Fletcher National Bank was renamed Bank One Indianapolis, and AFC became Banc One, Indiana Corporation.
The subsidiary banks—Union Bank & Trust Co. of Franklin, First American National Bank of Plainfield, Carmel Bank & Trust Co., and Citizens Northern Bank of Elkhart—were rebranded respectively as Bank One Franklin, Bank One Plainfield, Bank One Carmel, and Bank One Elkhart.
This merger awarded AFC executives a 20% share of voting stock in Banc One Corporation. Frank E. McKinney Jr. assumed the presidency of Banc One while continuing to lead Banc One Indiana Corp. The transaction was completed on January 27, 1987, with McKinney and two other directors from AFC joining the board of Banc One.
Indiana banks previously acquired—including Bank One Lafayette, Merrillville, Marion, Crawfordsville, Rensselaer, Richmond, and Bloomington—were consolidated under the management of Banc One Indiana Corporation.
In 1990, after nearly twenty years of planning initiated by American Fletcher, the 48-story Bank One Tower at 111 Monument Circle opened as Indiana’s tallest building.
By March 1997, Banc One unified its several separate Indiana banking entities into one statewide organization named Bank One Indiana. This consolidation enabled customers to access their accounts at any branch within the state and simplified operations that had formerly been divided among individual legal bank charters.