Remembering the Bank of Marshall County
Written by Justin D. Lamb
The Bank of Marshall County was located on Main Street from 1903 until 1966.
(Collection of the author)
The Bank of Marshall County first came into existence in 1903 when Roland G. Treas, W.C. Rowe, W. Mike Oliver, Elias Barry, Pete Ely, T.A. Miller, J.W. Reed, T.E. Russell, William Monroe Gold, W.M. Cole, W.N. McGregor, Robert L. Shemwell, and J.M. Johnson met to organize a new bank. The first stockholders meeting took place on July 22, 1903 and there were 200 shares authorized among the 83 original stockholders. The construction of the new building cost roughly $3,000 and the bank first opened for business on September 28, 1903 at 1100 Main Street. Roland G. Treas was chosen at the bank’s first president and W.C. Rowe was selected as the first cashier.
Treas resigned as president in 1906 and was replaced by County Court Clerk John Napoleon “Poly” Henson. During Henson’s tenure as bank president, he reported that the bank had grown over 100 percent with the total resources at that time being $84,000. Following his term as County Court Clerk, Henson relinquished his position as bank president and accepted a full time cashier position with the bank.
Longtime Bank of Marshall County Employees
Ben Lomond Trevathan
Hatler Morgan
Joe L. Price became bank president following Henson’s resignation and he served until his death in January 1949. Price was a native of the Fairdealing community and was very active in Marshall County politics. He served as Circuit Clerk, County Judge, and with 22 years of service, he was the longest serving Circuit Judge for Marshall and McCracken Counties. In 1912, Price hired Joe Darnall and Charles Blinton “Blint” Cox as cashiers for the bank. Both would go on to have successful political careers in the county. Darnall served two terms as Sheriff and was Director of the Civilian Conservation Corp in western Kentucky and Blint Cox served as County Attorney.
In February 1920, Blint Cox left the bank to start his own insurance agency and the board approved the hiring of Ben Lomond Trevathan to take his place. Trevathan would become a longtime staple of the Bank of Marshall County He served as cashier until the death of bank president Joe L. Price and then was appointed bank president. Treavathan was known all throughout Kentucky as an excellent banker and the Bank of Marshall County grew steadily under his direction. He was named President of the Group One of the Kentucky Bankers Association and served on the statewide Executive Committee for a number of years. In 1947, Trevathan joined fellow banker Hatler Morgan and Pete Gunn II in the insurance business and organized Morgan, Trevathan, and Gunn Insurance. Under Trevathan’s leadership, the Bank of Marshall County moved from its location on Main Street into a new facility located on the northeastern corner of Eleventh and Poplar Streets in 1966.
Trevathan died in 1967 after 18 years at the helm and Hatler Morgan was promoted as his successor. Morgan first came to work at the Bank of Marshall County in February 1949 as a cashier. For the next forty years, Morgan worked his way through the ranks and was a familiar face at the Bank of Marshall County. Morgan retired in December 1987 and passed away at the age of 93 in October 2000. After 96 years in operation, the Bank of Marshall County ceased operations when it was acquired by Mercantile Bank in 1999.