Mills County State Bank

The bank grew on cotton. After 1890 cotton overtook cattle as the county's leading industry: almost 22,000 acres were planted in 1900 and almost 46,000 in 1910, when the county had 1,484 farms and 9,694 people. Droughts and the slump after World War I cut cotton to 25,600 acres in 1920, and the population began a long decline. Farmers turned to sheep, goats and poultry; by 1930 the county counted 21,300 cattle, 68,000 goats, many raised for mohair, 78,000 sheep and 67,000 chickens, and grew pecans, fruit and dairy products.

What the plaque says

Mills County State Bank MILLS COUNTY EXPERIENCED MUCH GROWTH FROM 1887 TO 1917 AFTER THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE GULF, COLORADO, AND SANTA FE RAILWAY IN THE REGION. AS GOLDTHWAITE BECAME THE COUNTY SEAT AND CENTER, LOCALS SAW THE NEED FOR A BANK. ON JUNE 4, 1888, D.H. TRENT OPENED A PRIVATE BANK ON THE EAST CORNER OF FISHER AT 4TH STREETS WITH DEPOSITS OF $4,168.61 AND STOCK ACCOUNT OF $11,449.50. FOUR YEARS LATER, FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF GOLDTHWAITE WAS ORGANIZED WITH W.E. MILLER AS PRESIDENT. THE STOCKHOLDERS OF THE BANK VOTED TO LIQUIDATE IN 1901, AND THE BUILDING ALONG WITH THE FURNITURE WAS SOLD TO TRENT. IN 1908, CHARTER NO. 369 WAS GRANTED AT THE FIRST MEETING OF THE STOCKHOLDERS OF TRENT STATE BANK UNDER WHICH THE BANK OPERATES TODAY. TRENT STATE BANK WAS LOCATED ON THE WEST CORNER OF THE SAME INTERSECTION OF FISHER AT 4TH STREETS. DIRECTORS VOTED ON JANUARY 29, 1952 TO CHANGE THE NAME TO MILLS COUNTY STATE BANK. IN 1960, THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS MADE PLANS FOR THE BUILDING OF MODERN BANKING QUARTERS. THE NEW FACILITIES, WHICH INCLUDED A DRIVE THRU LANE, WERE CONSTRUCTED AT 1017 PARKER STREET. ON OCTOBER 10, 2008, STAFF, OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, STOCKHOLDERS, MANY BANKING DIGNITARIES, FRIENDS AND CUSTOMERS OF THE BANK ATTENDED A CELEBRATION AT MILLS COUNTY STATE BANK THAT MARKED 120 YEARS IN BANKING AND 100 YEARS AS A STATE CHARTERED BANK. OVER THE YEARS, THE BANK HAS EXPANDED, MODERNIZED, AND OPENED OTHER OFFICES IN BROWNWOOD, EARLY, AND HAMILTON. IT IS COMMENDED FOR ITS PERSEVERANCE THROUGH DIFFICULT TIMES AND IS CONSIDERED A LOYAL ADVOCATE OF THE COMMUNITIES IT SERVES. (2011)

Where it stands

More markers nearby

• Confederate Veterans Memorial of Mills County — steps away
• The Old Town Well, Goldthwaite — steps away
• Mills County — steps away
• Goldthwaite Eagle — steps away