Merchants National Bank (San Francisco, CA)

Episode Information

Episode UID
848701295
Episode Type
Run β†’ Suspension β†’ Unsure
Bank Type
national
Bank ID
84870 national
Charter Number
8487
Start Date
November 2, 1907
Location
San Francisco, California (37.780, -122.419)

Metadata

Model
gpt-5-mini (chosen from majority vote of a three-model LLM ensemble)
Short Digest
bfad05c563b0a1c5

Response Measures

Accommodated withdrawals, Clearinghouse loan, Full suspension, Books examined

Clearinghouse involved: Yes (loan, examination, or other measures)

Description

Article states the bank suspended and expresses confidence in resuming but gives no confirmed reopening date.

Events (5)

1. December 31, 1906 Chartered
Source
historical_nic
2. November 2, 1907 Other
Newspaper Excerpt
All the banks of San Francisco opened their doors as usual today. Gov. Gillette called a conference...the legal holiday will be continued from day to day until it is certain that no danger from a money panic exists in this state.
Source
newspapers
3. November 12, 1907 Run
Cause
Rumor Or Misinformation
Cause Details
Sustained vicious rumors and anonymous letters/telephone messages urged depositors to withdraw funds; prior withdrawals since failure of Oregon Trust increased outflows.
Measures
Clearing House association loaned up to legal limit; New York correspondents offered assistance; requested comptroller send special examiner.
Newspaper Excerpt
There has been a strange lack of confidence in the bank...vicious rumors about the bank were started...anonymous letters and messages by telephone advising them to withdraw their funds
Source
newspapers
4. November 12, 1907 Suspension
Cause
Rumor Or Misinformation
Cause Details
Immediate suspension followed heavy outflows attributed to persistent rumors and loss in clearings.
Newspaper Excerpt
The bank suspends today after having lost $157,000 in the clearings yesterday.
Source
newspapers
5. May 31, 1912 Voluntary Liquidation
Source
historical_nic

Newspaper Articles (2)

Article from Evening Star, November 3, 1907

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Article Text

BANKS AND BANKERS. SAN FRANCISCO, Cal., November 2.β€”All the banks of San Francisco opened their doors as usual today. Gov. Gillette called a conference of members of the clearing house association and leading financiers. He says that for the present the legal holiday will be continued from day to day until it is certain that no danger from a money panic exists in this state. LINCOLN, Neb., November 2.β€”Secretary E. Royse of the banking board stated today that the Commercial State Bank of Grand Island is solvent and should not have closed. He believed the bank would open next Tuesday. He has been informed that $25,000 is now on the way from Chariton, Iowa, to cover half of the loan to the First National Bank of that place. B. F. Clayton of Chariton, Iowa, is president of the Grand Island bank. ST. LOUIS, Mo., November 2.β€”Little blue, yellow and green slips of paper in denominations of $1, $5 and $10 were put into circulation as money today by the National Bank of Commerce, the Third National Bank and the Mechanics' American National Bank. These differed from the cashiers' checks which have been in circulation for a week in that they were made "payable to bearer," and that no indorsement or identification was required to cash them. KANSAS CITY, Mo., November 2.β€”Half a dozen local banks today began issuing cashiers' checks in amounts of one, two, five and ten dollars, to be used in place of currency and payable to bearer. Clearing house certificates also are being used as formerly. The question of issuing cashiers' currency was considered at a meeting of the principal bankers, and it was decided to leave it to the discretion of the individual banks.


Article from Los Angeles Herald, November 13, 1907

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Article Text

GILLETT TO CALL SESSION NEXT WEEK GOVERNOR IS NEARLY DECIDED TO TAKE ACTION WILL SUMMON LEGISLATURE IF STRINGENCY CONTINUES Chief Executive Confers with Leading Bankers and Announces That in All Probability He Will Assemble Lawmakers Associated Press. SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 12.β€”"Unless some unforeseen change occurs within the next few days materially relieving the money stringency I shall call a special session of the legislature to convene on the first of next week." Governor Gillett made this statement today before he left for Sacramento on the 5:40 train. During the day the governor was in consultation with both the commercial bankers and the heads of the savings institutions. He talked with Judge Taylor and had a long conference with Attorney General Webb. "Nearly every one whom I have yet of which forms a large per cent of the bank's asset. "There has been a strange lack of confidence in the bank for some time. There was no reason for any such feeling, and why it should have been singled out and persecuted with rumor after rumor as to its soundness is past my understanding. The bank suspends today after having lost $157,000 in the clearings yesterday. This loss has been running on an average of $75,000 a day for some time." The following is the statement of J. Frank Wilson, president of the Merchants National bank: "Since the failure of the Oregon Trust and Savings bank last August we have paid out of our deposits $2,300,000, and of this sum we have liquidated more than $1,500,000 since the holiday season commenced. We attribute this special run on our bank to the fact that vicious rumors about the bank were started at that time and kept up continually ever since the holiday season began. In fact we have been informed by some of our depositors that they have received anonymous letters and messages by telephone from anonymous sources advising them to withdraw their funds from our bank. The Clearing House association loaned us up to the limit permitted by the national banking act. "Our New York correspondents, Hanover National, National Bank of Commerce and the Merchants National, united in offers of all assistance needed to tide us over the emergency, but we were of course prevented from availing ourselves of this tender of assistance also by the national banking act. We have asked the advice of the comptroller of the currency and he will probably send a special bank examiner here at once to take charge. The Merchants National bank is absolutely solvent and we are confident we shall be able to resume operations in a short time."