First Pennsylvania Banking and Trust Company.

The Pennsylvania Company for Insurances on Lives and Granting Annuities was founded on December 9, 1809. With offices on South Second Street in Philadelphia, it was chartered by the state of Pennsylvania to issue stock and sell insurance.

In 1829 the Pennsylvania Company's charter was broadened to allow it to invest in federal, state, and municipal obligations as well as to purchase stock in navigation, bridge, and road companies. It also permitted the company to separate trust funds from general funds so that it could operate a trust department.

During the Civil War the Pennsylvania Company became a major underwriter of government bonds and other securities. By the 1870s it had assumed most of the functions of a commercial and investment bank even though it still was chartered as an insurance company. In 1911 it was invited to join the Philadelphia Clearing House Association and six years later it joined the Federal Reserve System. In the 1920s and 30s it absorbed a number of insolvent Philadelphia area banks and trust companies. In 1955 it merged with the First National Bank of Philadelphia and its name was changed to The First Pennsylvania Banking and Trust Company.

From the description of Records, 1809-1957. (Hagley Museum & Library). WorldCat record id: 86123637