Papers of Wilmington banks

The National Banking Acts of 1863 and 1864 were measures taken by the Federal government to assert more control over the banking system. The motivation for the formation of the acts was threefold: to create a system of national banks, to create a uniform national currency, and to help finance the civil war for the Northern states.

Scharf, J. Thomas. History of Delaware (1609–1888). 2 vols. Philadelphia: L.J. Richards & Company, 1888. Conrad, Henry C. History of the State of Delaware: From the Earliest Settlements to the Year 1907. Volume 1. Wilmington: Published by author, 1908.Historical and Biographical Encyclopedia of Delaware. Wilmington: Aldine Publishing and Engraving Co., 1882.

The National Bank of Wilmington and Brandywine was chartered in 1810 as the Bank of Wilmington and Brandywine. In 1865, it became a member of the national banking system, thus it was renamed the National Bank of Wilmington and Brandywine.

Beginning in 1869, Washington Jones was the president of the bank, and it is his signature that appears on most of the documents in this collection. Other staff members represented in the collection are William Seal, president 1829–1842, John A. Duncan, president 1863–1888, and Washington Jones, president from 1868 to at least 1888. The cashier signatures in this collection include Joseph P. Wollaston, 1825–1837, Evan Rice, 1862–79, Otho Nowland, 1882–1889, and Caleb Sheward, 1889–unknown.

Mechanics' Bank was only in existence from 1859 until 1865. It was located at the corner of Fourth and Market Streets in Wilmington.

In July 1864 the bank was dissolved, and its assets were acquired by the newly formed First National Bank of Wilmington. Mahlon Betts, the president of Mechanics' Bank, was chosen as president of the First National Bank.

The First National Bank of Wilmington was the first bank in Wilmington formed under the National Banking Law of 1864.

With Mahlon Betts as president and Samuel Biddle as cashier, the bank opened for business on July 4, 1864, in the building formerly occupied by the Mechanics' Bank.

The First National Bank of Wilmington staff members represented in this collection are: bank presidents Mahlon Betts, president until July 1864 and Edward Betts, president from 1864–at least 1888 and original Board of Directors members Joshua T. Heald, Dalaplaine McDaniel, George W. Bush, and Stephen S. Southard.

Union National Bank was initially chartered as a state institution on February 5, 1839, with the name "Union Bank of Delaware."

The bank flourished as a state institution, and its directors hoped to continue its upward trajectory by joining the national banking system. On June 20, 1865 the "Union Bank of Delaware" became the Union National Bank. The signature of John H. Danby, cashier beginning in 1885, is present in this collection.

George W. Bush & Sons was one of the earliest transportation houses in Wilmington, Delaware.

Samuel Bush first established the company in 1773. At this early date, Samuel Bush attempted to establish a direct trade and freight line between Wilmington and Philadelphia using the Delaware River. Beginning with only one freight vessel, this new trade route rapidly gained popularity with those living in the Wilmington area. It highlighted Wilmington as a convenient place for millers and distillers from Lancaster and Chester County to ship their goods to Philadelphia at a cheaper rate and more quickly. By the end of the eighteenth century, Samuel Bush had acquired a larger ship, and outfitted it to accommodate passengers as well as freight. The business continued to grow, and the Bush family established a merchant business on the French Street wharf in Wilmington where shipments were made to Philadelphia, New York, and the West Indies, as well as maintaining a store for the use of Wilmington citizens. The firm continued to grow under the direction of members of the Bush family, and in 1882 took on the firm name George W. Bush & Sons reflected in this collection. In addition to the transportation business, George W. Bush & Sons also achieved a prominent position in the coal trade and the lumber industry, particularly the yellow-pine trade. This involvement in the lumber industry led to the establishment of the George W. Bush & Sons' Lumber Company in 1884.