American National Bank of Terrell

The city of Terrell was founded in 1873. C. M. Bivens, John H. Corley, and F. A. Waters opened a private bank here in 1875. In 1878, Asa Holt replaced Waters as one of the owners. Later the enterprise became the Bivens and Corley Bank and moved to this site. A second financial institution, the Childress Brothers' Bank, was founded in 1876. Col. Jim Harris, who bought an interest in 1882, acquired the Childress bank in 1885 and the Bivens and Corley Bank in 1887, merging them as the Harris Bank. Also in that year, the town acquired a federally chartered bank, the First National. Oscar B. Colquitt (1861-1940), later to be governor of Texas, was one of its founders. At the death of Col. Harris in 1895, A. J. Childress, John H. Corley, and seven other citizens bought the Harris estate and formed Harris National Bank. One of the directors was the railroad magnate Edward H. R. Green, son of the noted financier Hetty Green. In 1903 the Harris National was renamed American National Bank. When the depression of the 1930s strained the town's resources, the two national banks were merged. As of 1976, the American National Bank is the oldest and largest financial institution in Kaufman County.

American National Bank of Terrell is a historical marker in Terrell, Kaufman County, dedicated in 1976. It is one of 90 historical markers documented in Kaufman County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 178 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 32.7365, -96.2771 near Terrell. The nearest cataloged historic site is First National Bank Building (historic place), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Terrell Times Star Building, Colquitt, Oscar Branch, Gov., Homesite of, and Texas & Pacific Railroad Freight Depot.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5257009417. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.