Western National Bank of the United States

National Bank of Commerce in New York

Formerly	Bank of Commerce in New York
Industry	Banking
Founded	1839 (1839)
Founders	Isaac Carow Pelatiah Perit Charles Handy Russell Jonathan Sturges Samuel Ward Stephen Whitney
Defunct	Template:End date and age
Fate	Integrated into Guaranty Trust Company of New York
Successor	Morgan Guaranty Trust Company J.P. Morgan & Co. JPMorgan Chase
Headquarters	Manhattan, New York , United States
Key people	Robert Lenox Kennedy Joseph C. Hendrix John Austin Stevens

The National Bank of Commerce in New York was a prominent national bank based in New York City that eventually merged with the Guaranty Trust Company of New York, which later evolved into the Morgan Guaranty Trust Company, a forerunner of J.P. Morgan & Co..

History

The Bank of Commerce was formally established on January 1, 1839, when its articles of association were adopted. Prior to commencing deposit operations on April 3, 1839, it operated from the basement of the Merchants' Exchange. Early on, the bank committed $500,000 towards a New York State loan aimed at expanding and deepening the Erie Canal. Initially, the bank was authorized to issue capital stock up to $5,000,000, with founders subscribing $1,505,000 and the remainder offered to the public. Its inaugural president was Samuel Ward from Prime, Ward & King.

At its first annual shareholders’ meeting held in May 1839, attendance included 565 stockholders. The original board comprised notable figures such as James Brown, Isaac Carow, James Donaldson, Archibald Gracie, James Kent, Robert B. Minturn, Russell H. Nevins, Pelatiah Perit, John Rathbone Jr., Robert Ray, Samuel B. Ruggles, Charles H. Russell, John Austin Stevens, Jonathan Sturges, Peter Gerard Stuyvesant, Samuel Ward, and Stephen Whitney. Following Ward’s passing in November 1839, leadership transitioned to John Austin Stevens as president.

By the enactment of the National Banking Acts of 1863 and 1864, the Bank of Commerce stood as the largest banking institution in the United States. In 1865, upon converting to the National Bank of Commerce of New York, dry goods merchant Charles Handy Russell succeeded Stevens as president. Earlier, in 1859, Robert Lenox Kennedy had joined the board and assumed the presidency in 1868. Although he stepped down in 1878, Kennedy continued serving as vice-president under Henry F. Vail, who had founded the Bank of the Republic alongside Gazaway Bugg Lamar.

Merger with National Union Bank

In 1900, the bank expanded by acquiring the National Union Bank of New York, which was established in 1893 by directors associated with the New York Guaranty and Indemnity Company and its successor entity, the Guaranty Trust. This institution maintained connections with the Mutual Life Insurance Company. Following this consolidation, Joseph C. Hendrix, who had served as president of National Union since its founding and was previously a U.S. Representative from New York, assumed presidency of the combined organization while J. Pierpont Morgan retained his position as vice president.

The merger reinstated capital at $10 million—equivalent to what the Bank of Commerce held in 1877 before a previous capital reduction. This union also ensured steady governance after the retirement of former president W. W. Sherman. William C. Duvall had been acting as president during this interim period amid speculation that then-Secretary of the Treasury Lyman J. Gage might be considered for leadership.

Merger with Western National Bank

In October 1903, the institution expanded by acquiring the Western National Bank of the United States, which had been established in 1887. This bank itself was created earlier that same year through the union of the larger Western National Bank of New York, closely affiliated with Equitable Life Assurance Society, and the smaller National Bank of the United States in New York, connected to Mutual Life and Morton Trust Company.

Following the merger, Western National's president, Valentine P. Snyder, assumed leadership of the combined organization, while former National Bank of Commerce Vice President J. Pierpont Morgan took on the role of First Vice President. The consolidated bank boasted $25 million in capital, a $10 million surplus, and net deposits approximating $120 million.

The logistical integration included moving $16 million in cash—of which $12 million was held in gold—and $67 million in securities from Western National’s premises to the headquarters of the National Bank of Commerce.

In 1911, after Snyder retired on April 1, James S. Alexander was appointed president. That same year, Paul Warburg joined the board as a director, succeeding Jacob H. Schiff. Alexander was elevated to chairman of the board in 1923, at which point Stevenson E. Ward was named president.

Merger with Guaranty Trust

The year 1929 marked a significant consolidation when the bank merged with the $2 billion Guaranty Trust Company of New York. This union, spearheaded by Myron C. Taylor, chairman of U.S. Steel’s finance committee, resulted in the formation of the largest banking institution in the nation by combining Guaranty’s prominent trust services with Commerce’s broad commercial banking network. Before finalizing the merger, the Bank of Commerce surrendered its national charter to convert into a state-chartered bank. The newly formed entity commenced operations in May 1929 with $184 million in capital. William C. Potter, then president of Guaranty Trust, took over as president of the merged organization, while former Bank of Commerce chairman James S. Alexander became chairman.

In 1959, Guaranty Trust united with J.P. Morgan & Co., with executives from Morgan assuming control despite Guaranty being nearly four times larger in size. The new organization was named Morgan Guaranty Trust Company of New York. Approximately ten years later, Morgan Guaranty established a holding company called J.P. Morgan & Co. Incorporated and continued operating under the Morgan Guaranty name throughout the 1980s before reverting solely to J.P. Morgan & Co. in 1988. Eventually, this firm merged with Chase Manhattan Bank in 2001 to create what is now known as JPMorgan Chase.