In 1908 T.R. Coffield traveled to Newcastle, TX from Bowie, TX by train with $10,000 in a suitcase to organize a bank. He had made arrangements to put the money in the vault at a dry goods store when he arrived. However, due to the train arriving late, Mr. Coffield was forced to spend the night in front of the lumberyard guarding the suitcase full of money with his pistol. He conducted business at the lumberyard, carrying the bank roll and receipts with him at night, until the first bank building was constructed at 722 Broadway in Newcastle. In 1914 a two-story brick building was erected at 701 Broadway and served as the Bank’s home until a new building was constructed in 1994 at 722 Broadway, the Bank’s original location.
Articles of Association for First State Bank of Newcastle were adopted in November of 1908 and on December 11, 1908 the Bank’s charter was signed in Austin. First State Bank of Newcastle was organized as a corporation and opened on January 2, 1909 to “conduct the business of receiving money for deposit, buying and selling gold and silver coins, and loaning money”. At the time, there were 250 shares of stock outstanding and held by 11 stockholders. The original Board of Directors of First State Bank of Newcastle included J.J. Perkins of Wichita Falls, J.A. Kemp of Wichita Falls, T.R. Coffield of Bowie, G.W. Terrell of True, and P.P. Langford of Wichita Falls.
In 1933 the Bank’s Board of Directors met and agreed to convert from a State chartered bank to a Nationally chartered bank, with the new bank’s name being Farmers National Bank of Newcastle and the stockholders, officers and directors remaining the same. An excerpt from a letter to the Bank’s customers in 1934 explained the reasoning behind the change: In accordance with the wishes of the National Government and the National Banking Act of 1933, it was believed advisable to form a National Banking Association to replace the State Banking Association, thus giving this community the best in banking that can be had, although we must say that the State of Texas is outstanding among the various States and do feel that the Banking Department of this State is second to none, yet it is the move of our great leader and stateman, President Roosevelt, to unify the banking system and we should assist and not hinder the noble and worth measures so advocated to promote the interest of our nation. We have therefore formed a National Bank, and have named it the Farmers National Bank of Newcastle.” The original Board of Directors of Farmers National Bank of Newcastle included J.J. Perkins of Wichita Falls, T.R. Coffield of Bowie, C.B. Daniels of Newcastle, T.J. Gardner of Newcastle and E. Joe Vanvetterman of Newcastle.
In 2014 the Bank’s Board of Directors met and agreed to convert from a Nationally charted bank to a Federal Reserve Member / State charted bank with the new bank’s name being Farmers State Bank of Newcastle and the stockholders, officers and directors remaining the same. An excerpt from a letter to the Bank’s customers in 2015 explained the reasoning behind the change: “The major consideration in our decision was to change our main regulatory entity from the national level to the state level. The Bank’s oversight will now come from the Texas Department of Banking along with the Federal Reserve. It is our opinion that the Texas Department of Banking is more community bank friendly than their counterparts at the national level, allowing us to better serve our customers in rural areas.” The original Board of Directors of Farmers State Bank of Newcastle included Wilson Taack of Newcastle, Jerry Whiteley of Newcastle, Bruce Bailey of Newcastle, John Taack of Newcastle and Doug Quinn of Newcastle.
Bank Presidents and their terms: G.W. Terrell (1908-1911), J.J. Perkins (1911-1940), C.B. Daniels (1940-1951), E. Joe Vanvetterman (1952), E.H. Remington (1952-1962), Clarence Daniels (1962-1988), Horace “Dutch” Morgan (1989-2001), Jerry W. Whiteley (2002-2007), Bruce R. Bailey (2008-Present).
Current Officers and Employees: Bruce Bailey (President), Sonya Maxwell (Vice President), Mona Gibbs (Cashier), Will Taack (Assistant Cashier), Rebecca Seely (Compliance Officer), Deb Casteel, Patti Gibson, Ale Lucio, Jamie Ward
Current Board of Directors: Wilson Taack (Chairman) of Newcastle, Jerry Whiteley (Secretary) of Newcastle, Bruce Bailey of Newcastle, John Taack of Newcastle, Doug Quinn of Newcastle.
