TALLADEGA COUNTY — The First National Bank of Talladega has had a few buildings, a few name changes and a couple of offices added in Munford and Lincoln, but 160 years after the bank’s founding, the one constant is the bank is still community owned.Now the bank wants to celebrate its founding with everyone in Talladega County. The bank is having an open house event at each of its three offices next week from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Talladega office will have its open house on Tuesday, Sept. 23, the Lincoln office on Wednesday, Sept. 24, and the Munford office on Thursday, Sept. 25.
FNB marketing director Chip Moore said the open house is for everyone in the community, not just bank customers. The bank wants to thank the community for its support over all these years, and, hopefully, gain a few new customers.
“We welcome people to come by and talk to us whether they bank here or not or if they just have a question about something. We want to let people know we’re here to answer questions and be up-front and be able to make them feel comfortable with banking with a community bank,” Moore said.
He said on Tuesday the bank will be hosting a cookout at the Talladega office, bringing in a radio station to do a live remote and registering people for a drawing to be held at the end of the month to win a 42-inch flat screen television and DVD player.
The bank will be giving out small pieces of merchandise to people who stop by, as well as giving out special gifts from area merchants.
“It’s a chance to see our people outside of their offices,” Moore said.
The bank was founded in 1848 by Major James Isbell when Talladega had approximately 1,250 people. Its first location was in the back room of a mercantile store and was simply named “James Isbell, Banker.”
It received a national bank charter on Jan. 11, 1893, and is the oldest continuously operated bank in Alabama. Its Lincoln office was opened in December 1969, and its Munford office was opened in July 1988.
Bank vice president Chad Jones said the bank’s longevity and success locally in Talladega County is no accident.
“What we do in the community, what we loan money to in the community is to better benefit the community. If you’re using a regional bank, your money is going outside the city and going to a different headquarters,” Jones said.
Moore said the collapse suffered this year by some of the large banks is not a concern for First National of Talladega.
“We’re a lot more conservative than some of these Wall Street banks,” Moore said. “The people that work here and manage the bank have the mentality similar to other small town people to be conservative and invest in the future.”
Recently, the bank’s Board of Directors signed a “Declaration of Independence” to promise to remain an independent, small-town bank.
The bank also remains competitive on a technological basis with large banks, with telephone banking, Internet banking and electronic statements.
Quality performance is also a cornerstone of the bank’s success.
“We’re lucky to be able to be rated a top-rated bank. There have been multiple times in the state of Alabama that we have been top rated. We still continue to be top rated based on our asset size,” Jones said.
Bauer Financial has given the bank a five-star rating, its highest rating, each year since 2005 to indicate First National is one of the safest in the nation.
The bank also has an experienced staff. It employs 50 people with a combined 675 years of experience.
“We enjoy what we do. Our employees work with us and not for us. Everybody’s opinion around here counts. Often times, we ask for our employees to give us feedback on what we can do internally to help not only work relations but help customer relations,” Jones said.
Jones said the bank is happy to work with community organizations, charities and schools to continue to make Talladega County a better place.
