Archives West Finding Aid

"On July 4, 1865, a group of merchants and civic-minded Portlanders banded together and applied for a national bank charter under the name "First National Bank of Oregon." After months of waiting, the group found out that the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) had modified their application with a name of "First National Bank of Portland." The OCC believed the "Oregon" name too general and that it might confuse creditors as to the bank's physical location. Within months, the bank had national bank notes with its name and 1553 charter number on-hand to circulate in the local community."

"First National Bank of Portland was the only national bank in Oregon until another was chartered in 1882. Even after competition blossomed, First National grew to be the largest bank in Oregon. It was known as a conservatively run bank, with regional correspondents in nearly all communities throughout the State."

"In 1930, First National Bank of Portland became the cornerstone holding of A.P. Giannini's start at building an interstate banking network - Transamerica - long before others saw the need. With Giannini's support, First National Bank of Portland continued an amazing growth trend, through acquisitions and new branch openings, even during the depth of the Great Depression."

"In 1981, the old "First National" freshened up its name as First Interstate Bank of Oregon, N.A., part of a uniform banking franchise that spanned eleven western states. Fifteen years later, First Interstate Bank of Oregon would cede its banking charter as part of FIB's merger with Wells Fargo."

[Source: Wells Fargo Blog, "Guided by History," in a post titled, "The First National Bank on the Pacific Coast." http://blogs.wellsfargo.com/guidedbyhistory]