By Brian Roulston
Let’s take a trip down memory lane to a time before the advent of online payments, debit cards, and credit cards. A period when banking transactions were conducted only in person using deposit slips, withdrawal slips, and handwritten bank books.
On January 9, 1872, a group of businessmen gathered on a cold chilly night eager to hear Donald H. McInnes’ proposal for a new bank in the city. McInnes was articulate, charming, and well read. He had achieved success in the wholesale dry goods industry and had served as a Conservative in the Ontario legislature in Hamilton from 1867 to 1871. Following that, he became a senator and held the position until his death in 1900.
After appointing McInnes as the first president of this new bank, which he held until 1882, and naming the board of directors, the bank was named “The Bank of Hamilton,” but locals generally referred to it simply as “The Hamilton”. It received its charter on July 5th of that year. Less than a month later, on August 1st, the bank opened its head office and first branch to the public. The office and branch were located on the southwest corner of King & John Streets within the McInnes Block.
Due to the severity of the 1870s economic downturn, the Bank of Hamilton struggled to survive for a number of years and came dangerously close to going bankrupt in 1879. During that summer, six other banks in Hamilton suddenly ceased operations. In an unfortunate turn of events, smoke was seen billowing from one of the city’s most majestic buildings at 5:45 p.m. on August 1st. The fire entirely devoured the structure and destroyed the Bank of Hamilton. The loss of the McInnes building alone was estimated at $474,625.00.
Property was bought on the southwest corner of King and James Streets in 1887 with a vision of one day building a new bank and corporate head office. Alongside the soon-to-be-built headquarters, a temporary branch and headquarters were opened. In his annual shareholders speech, John Stuart, the bank’s new president, stated that while the bank had taken a tiny step backward in the previous two years, the future looked bright for the local, Canadian, and Bank of Hamilton economies. Two years later a discussion was held during the bank’s annual shareholders meeting. One of the bank directors asked John Stuart whether the firm that planned to build a new hotel on the King and James Street site had submitted a formal application or was still interested. Stuart replied that he hadn’t heard, and that it was far more suited for a bank. Stuart promised that day to check out other properties before making his final decision on where to construct. But he knew that there would be no better place in his mind.
Meanwhile, a new branch of The Hamilton opened on James Street N. in Hamilton’s north end, and it was declared at the next shareholders meeting that it was doing rather well.
On Monday, June 6th 1892, Stuart expressed to a local paper that he hoped the new two-story building to be the corporate headquarters and a branch of the Bank of Hamilton would be completed and that they would be moved in, in time for the next bankers meeting in two weeks’ time.
At that meeting on Saturday, June 18th, John Stuart expressed sorrow that he had wanted to have the bank open for business that day to commemorate the bank’s 20th anniversary. Unfortunately, due to the uncompleted brass railings and fittings for the teller windows, it would only be the shareholders that day. Stuart promised the bank would be open for Hamiltonians to get their first glimpse of its interior on Monday at 2:30 pm until 5:00 o’clock.
The long-awaited day finally came, with eager customers waiting outside the Italian Renaissance-style building at the stunning Gore Street entrance. The doors and entrance were crafted from San Domingo mahogany. The two-story exterior was finished with Connecticut brownstone, and the windows were adorned with copper cornices and metal on plated glass and awnings for shade. Upon entering, the main room boasted an artistically pleasing appearance. The thirty-five-foot-high ceiling was reddish Numidian marble, complemented by heavy brownstone covering the lower walls of the 52′ x 60′ banking room. The rich red mahogany panels blended well with the overall design. The bank’s counters were arranged in the style of the Bank of England and Bank of Scotland, familiar to the many immigrants from those countries. A separate room for the women’s exclusive use featured a cheque counter, washrooms, and other amenities. On the second floor were the offices for the general accountant and director, as well as three-tier high vaults. A staircase leads to the bank’s attic, which contained several rooms for the chief bookkeeper, junior clerks, a large library, and an apartment for the officer in charge of the building. The bank’s overall measurements were 60’x82′, with a 68′ high tower. In 1893, the old temporary office and branch of The Hamilton was sold and converted into a new branch of The Trader’s Bank of Canada.
The Bank of Hamilton established its first interprovincial branch in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Two years later, The Hamilton had 128 branches throughout western Canada. By the turn of the 20th century the Bank of Hamilton was one of the largest banks in the country and was well known for its stellar customer service and its conservative approach to banking. A pension fund for bank employees was established across Canada.
The Bank of Hamilton was one of the first institutions to join the Canadian Bankers’ Association, which was created that year.
The Hamilton was doing so well financially that in 1905 they recruited Charles Mills, a notable Hamilton and Southern Ontario architect whose career spanned from 1894 to 1914, to remodel their headquarters. Mills was the architect for many of Southern Ontario’s most prominent churches and Hamilton buildings of the era, including the Philpott Methodist Church on York Blvd, Mill’s Hardware building across from the Gore in 1909, The Landed Banking & Loan Company in 1908, and the 541 Eatery on Barton St., which served as a branch of The Bank of North America in 1907. Charles Mill’s chose to add eight additional stories to the original two-story structure, thus becoming Hamilton’s first skyscraper.
In 1915 The Royal Bank attempted to merge with the Bank of Hamilton but was unsuccessful, much to the relief of shareholders and Hamiltonians who feared that the loss of their bank would imply the loss of Hamilton’s identity at the time.
On Monday, November 11th, 1918 Harry H. Gardner of New York City, known as “The Human Fly,” climbed the Bank of Hamilton to celebrate the end of WWI. Gardner spent most of the war scaling over 700 buildings throughout Europe and North America to generate funds for war bonds.
Thirty-five members of the Bank of Hamilton, from branches all across Canada were killed in action during the great war.
In the year 1920, a branch of the Bank of Hamilton was established for the ladies only, which was directed and operated exclusively by females. This branch was situated adjacent to the main office of the bank. The establishment of this branch was a response to the increasing impact of women in the workforce. The branch was equipped with amenities such as telephone lines and writing desks, and it was not a requirement for the ladies to be regular clients of the bank.
The Bank of Hamilton stopped issuing its own banknotes in 1922, however the notes remained in circulation for many years afterwards.
By 1923 The Hamilton operated 147 branches across Canada, including the head office in Hamilton. Ten of them were in this city alone! While the number of branches looked impressive, the institution’s bottom line hadn’t looked too rosy in recent years. As a result of increased business costs, competition from larger banks, and high Dominion, provincial, and municipal taxes. On a share-for-share basis, the Bank of Hamilton merged with the Bank of Commerce. The agreement also stated that all 900 employees would maintain their positions and receive their current pay. Employees of the Bank of Hamilton would also be eligible for the far more lucrative Bank of Commerce pension.
The Bank of Commerce merged into the Imperial Bank of Canada in 1960, which created the CIBC, the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. The Bank of Hamilton building was replaced by the twin tower structure named Commerce Place in 1985. The new dual 16-story structures were designed by architects Pellow & Associates. Today, Commerce Place is home to a number of offices as well as CIBC and Royal Bank branches.
