The Bank That Rose from the Ruins
After the collapse of Ben E. Snipes Co.'s bank, depositors gather in Roslyn to weigh a plan for the institution's comeback.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
A meeting of the Cle-Elum and Roslyn depositors of Ben E. Snipes Co.'s bank was held in Unity Hall, Roslyn, this afternoon to consider the report of a committee of depositors that was appointed to inquire into the condition of the bank's affairs. Ben E. Snipes and H. J. Snively, his attorney, were present. The committee made a statement similar to the report of the Ellensburg investigating committee heretofore published. The condition shown was that the assets were greatly in excess of the liabilities, and the plan of resumption provides for the opening of the bank within the next sixty days. Mr. Snively and Mr. Snipes both addressed the depositors, and the manner in which their statements were received indicated that full confidence was reposed in Mr. Snipes. The old committee was appointed to look after the interests of the depositors until the bank resumed, which will be done under a change of management, W. K. Abrams, the present general manager, retiring.
“The condition shown was that the assets were greatly in excess of the liabilities, and the plan of resumption provides for the opening of the bank within the next sixty days.”
Bank runs and institutional collapses were a terrifying constant during the financial panics of the 1890s. Today, the names Cle-Elum and Roslyn are better known for their resort communities, but this story captures the precarious reality of early Washington banking where personal reputation was the only insurance policy.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.