rOTOTTES UZUrOKD fOlWOOm MAIL TTU3UH1
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Modern Building
To Be Shown Off
10 a.m. fo 8 p.m.
Mayor Miller Slates ;
I: Cutting of Ribbon
Open house at the -modern
new quarters of. the Medford
branch of First National Bank
' of Portland will be held all day
" Monday, from 10 a.m.' to 8 p.m.
There will be flower for the
'ladies, refreshments for - all
' C B. Stephenson president
i of In First National Bank of
; Portland, will : be the guest
; speaker at the, Monday 'noon
Y Chamber of Commerce forum
i meeting at the Jackson hotel.
The bank president who
: heads the largest bank in the
Pacific Northwest, will discuss
. business conditions and pros
pects for 1955.
: He will also be a guest on
Southern Oregon Roundtable
television program at 6:30 pja.
today. .
guests, tours of the entire facili
ty including the vault, organ
music and searchlights during
the evening.
The grand opening ceremonies
. for the expanding bank will get
under way at 9:45 a.m. with a
ribbon cutting ceremony by May
or Earl Miller set for 10 a.m.
Music for the ceremonies will
be supplied by the Medford High
school band.
New Address
The new building is located
. on the corner of Main and Front
sts., a block west of the old
site. The addess is 1 East Main st.
First National President C. B.
Stephenson, Viee-Pr e s i d e n t
George. M. Henderson, head of
the . business development de
partment. Vice - President and
Trust Officer John Adams and
other administrative officers of
the bank's Portland head office
will be in Medford for the grand
opening. . - : -C:
Refreshments will include
doughnuts, cake, coffee and
punch. Each woman visitor will
be presented a vanda orchid.
The organ music will be sup
plied throughout the day by
Abby Greene, of the Rogue Val
ley Country club.
Largest Branch Building
The new half million dollar,
two-story structure, is the larg
est building occupied entirely
by a branch in the statewide
First National system;
The new building is of rein
forced concrete construction, fin
ished with Roman brick veneer
and dark granite. It is more
than three times the size of the
present bank quarters, which the
branch has occupied for 20 years.
The modern building features
an. increased number of tellers
windows, two of the popular
drive-in banking windows which
allow customers to bank directly
from their autos, a large park
ing lot to the rear of the block
and more safe deposit boxes in
an all-new enlarged vault. '
Offices on Second Floor
The second floor area is oc
cupied by the branch's , trust
department, the bookkeeping de
partment, employee lunchroom,
two conference rooms' and men's
and women's lounges." The sec
ond floor is served by customer
and freight elevators. '
Construction began on the
structure one year ago, under
the direction of Reimers and
Jolivette, Portland building con
tractors. Plans for the new bank
were prepared by Church, New
berry and Roehr, Portland arch
tectual firm. ;
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MOVING DAY T. ' J.' Hauer, assistant coor
dinator for branches of the First National
Bank- of Portland, whose office is in the.
Medford branch, and his secretary, Mrs. Rob
ert Meyers, are shown moving in" to 'their
n&Mmm mszmtims . -9 . ... -in i.ir j a i
SPARKLING NEW INTERIOR Shown
above is a view of the interior of the new .
Medford branch of the Fiirt National Bank .
of Portland, which will be dedicated and
opened for business and public inspection at
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NEW AUTO BANKING Elwood Hedberg, manager of the Med
ford branch of ;the First National Bank of Portland, demonstrates
how the new auto-banking windows, at the rear of the new branch
building, will work when they go
ing him is Mrs. Clarence H. Redmond, a collections teller at trie
bank. A sliding drawer permits
mobiles, but protects bank employees from chilly breezes. The
two auto-banking windows are located just off the bank's parking
lot, which is on Front and Sixth
Moving Bank Office
1 1 aa'SaiaaI
Employees
Most people probably have no
idea of the logistical prdblems
involved in moving;-a bank to a
new location without loss' of nor
mal service to "customers, but
Elwood Hedberg, manager of the
Medford, branch of First National
Bank of -Portland could probably
give them all something to think
about this week.
Today, from ' the hours long
before daybreak until late to
night, Hedberg will be directing
theumoving of the major portion
of the Medford branch of First
National into its large new build
ing a block west of the present
location. ' :: '
Began Two Weeks Ago
Actually, the 'moving job be
gan two weeks ago, and isn't ex
pected to be completed until
shortly before the bank opens
Monday morning in its expanded
new location, Hedberg said.
One of the greatest problems
involved in moving the bank
from, one building to the other is
the valuable contents : of the
vault. Numerous security - mess-
as
into operation tomorrow. Serv
the taking of deposits from auto
sts (Brainerd. photo)
Discover
ures and extreme care must , be
taken to protect the public property-in
the' safe deposit boxes,
and the bank's coin and curren
cy. The great weight of the units
of safe deposit boxes add to the
moving problem. ' l -rJ.
; There are 34 units or nests,
as the bankers call them of safe
deposit boxes to move from the
old vault to the new one. They
weigh between.. 250 'and 1,500
pounds each, and must be han
dled with heavy duty mechanical
equipment. ; ' : V -; : "
Policemen on Duty - r :
A number of city and state po
licemen will be on duty in the
district surrounding ; the bank
while ' the moving is under way,
and will be in both bank build
ings to discourage anyone who
might be getting malicious ideas.
v The first contents of the old
bank to be moved were the per
manent records, which date back
a half century, and supplies to
operate the bann in the new
structure.
Included in the tons of "dead
Problem
new 'quarters last week. Moving to the new -;
building ; has been underway for about two
weeks, and is being completed today, in time
for tt(e official opening .tomorrow.
. (Braiaerd photo)
ipiinig ff feu FDirgt CJkiifiiigil f arab $mmk
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10 a.m. tomorrow. At. the left are banking,
windows, 7 and in the : background are the -desks
of officers of the bank. At right are
more banking windows. The view is south
ward, toward the main entrance on Front st. I
' : -'.'- (Brainerd photo)
Banking
on
Will Be Shown
: A-technicolor motion picture,
'The Banking Story," will be
shown throughout the day Mon
day in conjunction with the open
house celebration of the expand
ing Medford branch of First
National Bank of Portland. The
movie will be shown on the base
ment floor of the new1 building.
.produced under, the supervi
sion of the bank, the movie
depicts the rapid progress and
growth of, Oregon. It shows the
major roles played by industry,
commerce and' agriculture in
the development of our state,
and the fashion in which mod
ern banking contributes to our
economic welfare. ; ;
storage' already moved into the
storage vaults of the new bank
are copies of all deposit state
ments ever sent out from the
bank, all savings withdrawal
records, undelivered checks, safe
deposit records, and other rec
ords which a bank must keep
permanently. There are ' also
many other records which must
be kept for various periods up
to 20 years.
Mova Machines :;. 1
About 50 machines had to be
moved alter tne banging day is
completed Saturday,' and each
must be in operation again on
Monday morning by 9 a.m. in
the new building. ;
The only exception to this is
the huge check sorting, machin
ery. These machines Vere moved
Friday evening and set up in op
eration in he new building Sat
urday morning. This will necessi
tate bringing all the checks that
are handled in the old bank on
Saturday to the new bank : lor
sorting, and then returning them
to the old building for dispatch
to other banks and the branche's
bookkeeping department.
All in all,, it's a busy weekend
for Hedberg and his staff.
Mint Growers Elect
Rainier Man Leader
Corvallis 0J.R) John W.
Whipple, Rainier, Ore., was re
elected president of the Oregon
Essential Oil Growers' league at
the end of - a twoIay meeting
here Friday. .
Dale Turnidge, Jefferson, was
elected vice-president, and.C. E.
Horner, plant pathologist at Ore
gon State college, was; renamed
secretary ;..( ' ;
More than 200 peppermint
growers attended the , meeting.
WAS MANAGER F. n o '
Thorndike. above: is one of ip
best-known banking officials in
southern Oregon. He was man
ager of the Medford branch f
the First National Bank of Port
land from 1935 until 1952, when
he was promoted to a bank vice
presidency. He .retired last sum
mer,
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II IS 'T . . "" TT 1
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Bank's Growth Told
Since Founding
In April of 1905
Business Moves
Several Times -
- The move of the Medford
branch of First National Bank of
Portland to its new, modern
quarters has caused many in the
Medford area to remember the
history and growth of banking in
this community. v 5 a
Medford has ; had i banking
since April 7, 1905, when the
town's first bank, the First Na
tional , Bank of Medford, was
founded.: - . -j ;
The business began in a small
store room at the northeast cor
ner of Main and Bartlett sts.,
with capital of $25,000, and a
working force of only the bank's
cashier., . ,.. . .-. -:
Needed Larger Quarters
; Capable management and the
growth of the business interests
in the community contributed to
the prosperity of the bank, and
larger quarters soon were neces
sary.- . , :
In 1906, the bank moved to
larger and better equipped
quarters in a brick building,
which at that time occupied a
portion - of the original site.
The bank's rapid growth con
tinued. Within five years its re
sources passed the million dollar
mark, and the increased volume
of busmess necessitated another
move to still larger, more con
venient banking quarters.
The present old First National
building was constructed in 1911
and 12, and has been occupied
ever since by the bank.
Joins System r
The Furst : National of Med
ford became the Medford branch
of First National of Portland in
1935, and , seven years later it
was necessary to remodel and
enlarge the facilities to keen
pace with the growing commun-
. Only one of the original offi
cers and directors of the old
bank still survives. He is George
W. Dunn, 91-year-old resident of
Ashland, who was a director of
the bank when it was chartered.
He was later president of the
First National of Ashland, which
was succeeded by the Ashland
branch of Fn-st National of Port-
Dunn also served for
years as a state senator.
many
in inn uen Harder came to
Medford as vice-president of the
irst .National of. Medford, and
within six months became res
ident of the bank. He continued
in that post until First National
of Portland purchased the bank
m i9ia. Harder, 75, is now re
aired and resides in Medford.
Three Managers
oince Decommg a branch of
Dirst National of Portland, the
imun. nets uaa mree managers. A
A. Schramm was the first man-
uui im remamea only six
months before being transferred
to another asignment.
Eugene Thorndike, who, re
tired several months ago as vice-
president of the branch, became
manager in 1935 and continued
in that position' until being ele-
vaiea to vice-president in 1952.
He retired last year.
At that time Elwood Hedberg,
the present manager, became the
operating head of the bank. Hed
berg is a native of Jackson coun
ty, having been born and raised
in Ashland. He began his bank
ing career at the Ashland branch
of First National in 1923, and has
Deen in Medford since 1942.
Fastest Growing
In recent years the Medford
branch has become the fastest
growing banking office in the
First National statewide system,
illustrating well the spectacu
lar record of growth of banking,
agriculture and other commercial
industries in the Medford area.
Figures released by Hedberg
show, that in December, 1935,
when the bank became a branch
of the statewide bank, deposits
V ' J1L 4 Amp9
saffl! VfpJ
fci 1 if T 1 1 1 mil i" ifcml i ""4-'i. i m Jfc 'I
STOCKROOM SUPPLIES Wesley Nissen (left) operations offi
cer of the Medford branch of the First National bank,: and Bud
Fosmore, from the Portland head office, assisted last week as sup
plies were moved into the stock
at 1 Eatf Uaia at
3W
FORMER PRESIDENT Ben Harder, above, was president of the
First National Bank of Medford, which rwas the predecessor of the
present branch bank, from 1921 to 1935, when it was purchased
by the First National of Portland. Still living in Medford, Harder
is retired. He is shown with a
March 3, 1912, which told. the
original site to the new quarters,
for the new building.
ONE OF FIRST DIRECTORS
years old, is the only surviving
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directors of the First National Bank ot. Medford, organized in
1905. He served later as president of the First National Bank of
Ashland. Dunn was a state senator from Jackson county for many
years, and, this picture was taken of him a number of. years ago at
his desk in Salem. " ' , " ' . -r "
Major Oil Companies
Seek Oregon Deposits
Roseburg (U.R) Oregon is
being explored for oil deposits
by several major oil companies
according - to G. M: Valentine,
district, geologist for Shell Oil
company. ; '
Valentine said the .'state is
"crawling", with exploration par
ties. - : 1 .
Major companies actively in
volved were listed as Sinclair
Oil and Gas, 'Humble Oil and
Refining, General Petroleum, El
Paso Natural Gas, Standard Oil
of California, Richfield Oil, Ohio
Oil, the Texas company and
Shell Oil.
totalled $3,000,000 and : total
loans amounted-to less 'than
half million. Since that time, de
posits have -increased nearly
rune tunes that amount.
By 1945, ten years later, de
posits had climbed-to nearly S19,
000,000 and loans were past the
$2,000,000 mark. Last week, de
posits at the branch were $27,-
000,000 and loans totaled $10,-
000,000.
"This steady growth of the
Medford area, reflected in . the
continually increasing volume of
business at First National s local
branch, has made the new bank
ing facilities ' necessary' Hed
berg said. -
room of the new branch building
photo)
copy of the Medford Sun, dated
story of the bank's move from its
which are now being abandoned
, (Brainerd photo) J
George W. Dunn, Ashland, now 91
member of the original board of
ai u 11 jib 11 .
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OLD BANK BUILDING Shown , abova ii an old pleturo of the
quarters the First National bank has occupied since 1912. The pic
ture, from the files of The MaU Tribune, Is undated, but tho
clothes on the woman in the picture indicate it must have been
taken-about the time the building was opened. Plans for the struc
ture include the opening of stores there. It has been purchased by
Ben Diercks, Grants Pass lumberman.' o
KINDERGARTEN NOV OPEN
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Christian Pro-School Training ; : .
, Morning classes now in session 9 ro 12 ajn..
Afternoon classsv planned 1 to 4 p.ea.,
. CHILDREN CAN ENROLL ANY TIME :
Reasonable Rates Experienced" Jf7 :
MEDFORD ASSEMBLY OF GOD
1103 West Main Street -For;
further Information Phone 2-4292 er 2-5323 -
pnmi UEi7 r:unsi::3 -co
; 506 WEST MAIN STREET
Medford, Oregon Phone
Post operatives, chronics and convalescents - ,
Specialized care. with kindness
Under Registered. Nurse Supenrisisn
NURSES ON DUTY 24 HOURS DAILY
3
PRESENT MANAGER Elwood
Hedberg,. above, is manager of
the ! bank today. A nathra of
Japkson county r he began his
career iri Ashland, moving to
Medford in 1942, serving as an
officer of the branch until hia
promotion to manager in 1952,
succeeding Eugene TnornaiKe, -
who became vice-president. . .. .
$20 Boost Sought
In School. Support
Portland (U.R) An offic- ,
ial of the Oregon Education as
sociation said Saturday the Leg
islature, which opens Its 1953
session Monday at Salem, will bo
asked to increase the basic school
support fund from $80 to $100
per census child. : -y
Cecil W. Posey, executive sec
retary of the OEA, said the pro
posed increase would add about
$8,000,000 to the basic school
fund figure which' is expected to
exceed $70,000,000 during the
biennium beginning July 1. Sup
port totals were nearly $65,000,
000 for the two-year period end
ing 'June- 30. Posey 'said the in
crease in : the next' biennium la
attributable to an annual school
enrollment increase of approxi
mately 20,000. vlr ' '
ON REED BOARD -.!
: .Portland UJJ Harold E
Sanford, vice-president of Con
tinental Grain, company for the
Pacifier coast, has accepted' the '
chairmanship of the .board oi
trustees of Reed college here,
it was announced Saturday.' :
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