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Letters sent to Mt. Pleasant Wells Fargo Bank branch customers have announced the closing of the branch effective Wednesday, May 13, 2020, at 12 p.m., located at 106 West Main Street, Mt. Pleasant, after 19 years of service as Wells Fargo Bank. (Photo by Ray LaFollette, The Pyramid)

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Fairview State Bank, Sanpete Valley Bank and First Security Corporation were all predecessors to what became the Mt. Pleasant Wells Fargo Bank branch when Wells Fargo and Company purchased First Security Corporation in April 2001. (Photo compilation by Ray LaFollette, The Pyramid)

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LuAnn Hamilton Greenwell

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MT. PLEASANT– Wells Fargo Bank has announced that the Mt. Pleasant bank branch located at 106 West Main Street, Mt. Pleasant, will close on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. No explanation for the closing has been provided.

In visiting with the Wells Fargo Bank spokesman, Tony Timmons, it has been learned that the only notice of the closure has been provided in a letter that was sent to all account holders.

One of the bank’s customers, who was visibly upset about the coming closure, provided a copy of the letter, which states that this change will not affect customer accounts. This same customer reported that he will not be driving the half-hour drive to Nephi, but has not yet decided what he will do with his account.

All customers are invited to visit other locations, such as the nearest branch in Nephi or by accessing accounts via Wells Fargo Online banking and the Wells Fargo Mobile app. To learn more about those banking options, visit www.wellsfargo.com/alwaysopen.

Those customers with safe deposit boxes were notified that they will receive a separate letter. It is assumed that letter will provide options and instructions regarding what can be done with items in a safe deposit box.

The Mt. Pleasant Wells Fargo Bank is the only branch located in Sanpete County. The next nearest branches are located in Nephi, Spanish Fork and Richfield.

Wells Fargo and Company purchased First Security Corporation in April 2001 and has provided bank services at 106 West Main Street, Mt. Pleasant, since that date. As of their announced closing date, May 13, 2020, it will have been 19 years of continued Wells Fargo Bank service in Sanpete County.

There is a story to be told regarding the history of banking in North Sanpete County. In fact, back in August 2003, an article was printed in the Destination Mainstreet newsletter entitled “Oh, Ho, The Wells Fargo Wagon…”

That article was composed with the help of LuAnn Greenwell, of Milburn, who at that time was the manager and assistant vice president of the Mt. Pleasant Wells Fargo Bank branch. What follows is an updated version of that article:

Bank history

In order to examine Wells Fargo Bank’s history on Mt. Pleasant Main Street, we have to start in Fairview. The Fairview State Bank was organized in Fairview on Feb. 24, 1914, with capital of $25,000 and officers as follows: President Andrew Lasson; Vice President A.R. Anderson; Senior Cashier Peter Sundwall; and as Directors Ole Lasson and John C. Cutler.

The bank was located at 35 South State Street, Fairview, on the current site of Centracom Interactive, formerly known as Central Utah Telephone.

In August 1929, a severe economic depression began in the United States and spread worldwide. On July 16, 1931, the people of Mt. Pleasant were shocked when the Mt. Pleasant Commercial and Savings Bank failed to open.

Then to add to the discouragement and confusion, The North Sanpete Bank closed its doors four days later on July 20, 1931.

Many other area business’s failed as a result of what became known as The Great Depression. Economic times were tough. Then came the good word that President Roosevelt had signed a bill making banks safe for the country and the people. A letter of appreciation came to Burke McArthur, who was editor of The Pyramid, for his help in that movement.

In 1933, Fairview State Bank moved to Mt. Pleasant at the request of the State Banking Commission in order that a greater territory could be served, inasmuch as four other banks which served the interests of the people in the north end of Sanpete County had discontinued business due to the depression.

At the time of the move, Fairview State Bank had assets totaling $400,000 and was renamed to become the Sanpete Valley Bank. The president of the new bank was Peter Sundwall Jr.

The Sanpete Valley Bank initially moved into what had been the North Sanpete Bank at 48 West Main Street, Mt. Pleasant, currently occupied by Go Insurance. In 1938, Sanpete Valley Bank built a new building across the street at 41 West Main Street, which is currently not in use as a store front.

On March 5, 1962, with L.L. Peterson as president, Sanpete Valley Bank was purchased by First Security Bank of Utah. The bank continued to operate at 41 West Main Street, until they moved to 106 West Main Street in the early 1970s.

First Security Bank had a rich Utah history. In 1924, Marriner Stoddard Eccles and his brother George Eccles joined with the Browning family in Ogden to form the Eccles-Browning Affiliated Banks which within three years acquired control of banks at seventeen locations in Utah, Idaho and Wyoming.

In June 1928, First Security Corporation was organized as a holding company to manage the seventeen financial institutions. This is believed to be the first multi-bank holding company in the United States.

Marriner Eccles, as corporation president, was now the leading banker in the Intermountain West. He was the principal sponsor of the Banking Act of 1935 which restructured the Federal Reserve System into its present form after the The Great Depression of the 1930s brought on a crisis in the banking industry.

The Eccles family and their related foundations have continued to significantly support Sanpete County. Examples include the Fairview Museum of History and Art, Eccles Center for the Performing Arts at Snow College, the Manti City Hall restoration project, and the Cleone Eccles Equestrian Center at ConToy Arena to name just a few. Their support is deeply appreciated by members of the Sanpete County community.

On Oct. 5, 1966, LuAnn Hamilton Greenwell, Milburn, as a young girl had her picture taken while sitting on the counter in the First Security Bank of Utah at 41 West Main Street.

She had no idea then that one day she would be the manager and assistant vice president of the Mt. Pleasant Wells Fargo Bank branch when Wells Fargo and Company purchased First Security Corporation in April 2001.

Wells Fargo has a rich and colorful history of its own. Henry Wells and William Fargo saw an insatiable need for express and banking services in the west. The two men along with associates formed Wells Fargo and Company in 1852, a company that was soon busy buying gold dust, selling drafts, general banking and express business.

Fast forward 168 years to the present, according to Wikipedia, Wells Fargo and Company is now an American multinational financial services company headquartered in San Francisco, California, with central offices throughout the United States. It is the world’s fourth-largest bank by market capitalization and the fourth largest bank in the U.S. by total assets.

For those interested in more of the history, note that the Fairview Museum of History and Art, 85 North 100 East, Fairview; has a wonderful display of Fairview State Bank memorabilia on the second floor and an original Wells Fargo Cargo Wagon on display outside.

Banks future

Until this coming May, 13, the Mt. Pleasant Wells Fargo Bank branch is still located at 106 West Main Street. Efforts to determine the future of the building are in progress. It has been reported that some real estate agents have said the building will be a hard sell due to the multiple banks in the area.

It has been said that Mt. Pleasant City has an interest in the building for use as city office space. The question then arises, “What does the city need that huge bank vault for?”

The Wells Fargo Bank ATM, just north of the building, may or may not be available for use by Wells Fargo customers after the closure, that use has not been finalized at this time.

Sources of information for this article include the book “These… Our Fathers” arranged and published by the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers of Sanpete County, 1947, Utah History Encyclopedia, and Stagecoach, a history of Wells Fargo and Company.