Did you know that Romeo sustained two successful banks for a long time? They were the Romeo Savings Bank and the Citizens' National Bank. The latter's building turned 100 years old this year!
The structure that currently houses several businesses including Main's Treat Coffeehouse once held the Citizens' National Bank of Romeo on the northwest corner of North Main and St. Clair Streets. That bank was organized in 1874 with Edwin W. Giddings (brother of Moses and Alden Giddings) as President, John Smith, Jr. as Vice-President, and Samuel A. Reade as Cashier. That's why the building says that it was founded in that year. It was originally located in a tall Italianate building that was constructed around 1875 next door to the Newbury Brothers general store. You can see both buildings in the back left corner of this picture from 1883.
In 1925, the Newbury Brothers building was razed to make way for a newer version of the Citizens' National Bank. According to Richard Beringer in his 2020 People, Places & Things: Our Past column, during the construction process, a general store owned by Mr. Cochran also collapsed. Because of this building collapse, part of the third floor of the Italianate structure was damaged. A later fire "resulted in the removal of the third floor entirely."
The Italianate building still stands to this very day as the right side of Town Hall Antiques on North Main Street.
The new Citizens' National Bank officially opened to the public on Saturday, May 1, 1926. The Romeo Observer detailed everything about the event in its May 5th issue. For example, it estimated that 4,000 people came on opening day to inspect the new place. The Bond-Hubbard Company of Chicago designed and built the structure since they specialized in bank buildings, yet much of the material and labor was obtained in Romeo. Mr. L.J. Wilbur supplied the furniture, and William C. McDowell furnished and installed the heating and plumbing. The exceptions were the bricklayers, marble cutters, and decorators. It cost $95,000 ($1,812,882.29 in 2026) to build it.
The structure as it stood in 1926 can be seen in the pictures supplied by the article mentioned earlier and in The Romeo Observer's April 28, 1926 edition.
When I said that the article detailed everything about the opening, I meant it. They left no stone unturned when describing the new bank building. In truth, it's a long story, but I'll include some snippets. For instance, the overall architecture is Corinthian with fluted columns and plain pilasters on the front and side, with beautifully carved caps. In addition, the entrance door is "of copper with solid bronge hardware."
The public lobby and waiting room floors were made out of 8x16 inch blocks of Tennessee marble, while the directors room was of high grade compressed cork. The ceiling was ornament with beams and cornice into panels, and the windows were "hung with suitable drapes of a harmonizing color" and gave the entire room a very rich and finished appearance.
The article also noted that the building was not just wholly devoted to the bank, for it contained other businesses. On West St. Clair Street, there were the jewelry store run by H.P. Owen and James Perkins's barber shop. The second floor of the structure was divided into offices with realtors Eldred & Stone occupying a suite, while the lodge of Oddfellows inhabited the rest of the area on the same floor. The store adjoining the bank on North Main Street had two stories, the first one being of modern construction and equipment and the second comprising of offices with Dr. C.C. Stone having the front suite. To see more of this article, you can look it up on the Suburban Library Cooperative's Local History Digital Collection website
The Citizens' National Bank of Romeo operated smoothly from that spot, even during the Great Depression, until 1937. That was the year when the building went up for public auction with bidding no less than $9,000 ($211,659.72 in 2026). The Feburary 24, 1937 edition of The Romeo Observer explains it further.
The post office moved into the structure on July 1, but it wasn't the end of the bank just yet. Receiver Clarence C. Winslow moved into the offices located in the second floor of the building. Citizens' National Bank was the headquarters of closed banks in places like Almont, Avoca, Capac, Millington, Yale, and Romeo at that time. It would remain there for four years. In 1941, The Romeo Observer Press announced that the bank's remaining assets were to be sold on the front page of its April 18th issue.
Despite the challenges, the building that once housed the Citizens' National Bank of Romeo still lives on. Several businesses have occupied the space like the post office, the Romeo Townhall Soda Fountain, Village Tattoo, Romeo Barber Shop, Schoenherr Roofing, and the aforementioned Main's Treat Coffeehouse. Additionally, if you look closely, you can see marks where the bank's name used to be at on North Main Street.
Happy 100 years! Here's to another 100!
To learn more about the Citizens' National Bank building, you can contact the Romeo Community Archives at rca@romemodistrictlibrary.org or call (586) 690-4890. If you want to search for articles on that topic, you can find the Romeo newspapers like The Romeo Observer on the Suburban Library Cooperative's Local History Digital Collection website.
Images and sources courtesy of the Romeo Community Archives; Melvin E. and Joan D. Bleich Collection, The Romeo Observer, April 28, 1926, p.1, May 5, 1926; p.4, January 20, 1937, p.1, February 24, 1937, p.4, March 3, 1937, p.7, June 2, 1937, p.4, and March 18, 1941, p.1; The Romeo Observer Centennial Supplement, May 19, 1966, p.1; The Record, March 8-14, 2017, p.5 and June 24-30, 2020, p.3; and Past and Present of Macomb County, Michigan by Robert F. Eldredge, 1905