Eastern Townships Bank

Location: Eastern Townships, Quebec, Canada

Existed: 1859–1912

Merged into the Canadian Bank of Commerce, which later became the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce

The Eastern Townships Bank was a Canadian chartered bank, which operated 1859–1912. Concentrated in southeastern Quebec, some branches were later opened in western provinces.^[1]

The bank received a charter of incorporation in 1855^[2] but did not establish operations until 1859.^[3] The authorized capital was £250,000 in 1855, increased to £400,000 in 1859. Of the latter, £206,200 was issued and £20,620 paid up by June.^[4] That July, the bank purchased a building in Sherbrooke, which was remodelled before occupation.^[5] That September, the bank opened for business^[6] at the Sherbrooke head office^[7] and Waterloo branch. The Stanstead branch opened months later.^[8]

The authorized capital rose from $400,000 to $500,000 in 1871, to $750,000 in 1872, to $1,000,000 in 1873, and to $1,500,000 in 1875.^[9] The more grandiose head office building was completed and occupied in 1877.^[5] On the collapse of the Consolidated Bank of Canada in 1879, the Sherbrooke agency was taken over.^[10]

The Eastern Townships Bank operated 7 branches by 1879 and 12 by 1899. A prerequisite for the opening of a new branch was for the local populace to subscribe to shares in the bank.^[11] These same individuals were then encouraged to have a voice in the management of that branch.^[12] In 1895, Saint-Hyacinthe became the first branch outside the Eastern Townships.^[13] In 1900, a branch opened in Montreal.^[14]

British Columbia branches opened in Grand Forks in 1898^[13] and Phoenix in 1900.^[15] The authorized capital rose to $2,000,000 in 1900 and $3,000,000 in 1903, all of which was issued by 1907.^[16] The 13 branches in 1900 had expanded to 64 branches and 39 agencies by 1911,^[17] which stretched to the west coast.^[18]

The bank presidents were Col. Benjamin Pomroy 1859–1874, Richard William Heneker 1874–1902, and William Farwell 1902–1912.^[19] Col. Pomroy was the driving force who founded the bank and also actively promoted the building of railways.^[20] Heneker was an architect who rose to become a prominent businessman in Sherbrooke.^[21] Companies under his oversight included a major land developer, woollen mill, and public utility. He served as chancellor of Bishop's College and mayor of Sherbrooke.^[22] Farwell joined the bank as the cashier in 1861^[21] and was retitled as general manager in 1878.^[23]

Amalgamation proposals were made by the Bank of Montreal in summer 1905 and by the Canadian Bank of Commerce in spring 1906. The latter again tried in late 1911 and this time achieved its goal^[24] of securing a strong position in Quebec. The Eastern Townships Bank understood that rejecting the offer and building its own competitive nationwide network would have required a considerable amount of fresh capital.^[25] The amalgamation occurred in 1912.^[26]

In 1965, the former Thetford Mines branch building (1910) was saved when fire destroyed the adjacent building.^[29] In 1996, the former head office in downtown Sherbrooke became the Musée des beaux-arts de Sherbrooke, an art museum.^[30]

The former Cowansville branch houses the Bruck Museum, an art and heritage museum,^[31] and the Coaticook one is a CIBC location.^[32]

Montreal branches have become premises for Scotiabank,^[33] CIBC,^[34] and H&M.^[35]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Eastern Townships Bank.

• List of Canadian banks

• Ross, Victor (1920). "A history of the Canadian Bank of Commerce : with an account of the other banks which now form part of its organization". library.ubc.ca.