The history of a bank is often the story of people; its founders, its shareholders, its employees and its customers. It is people who have made The Baxter State Bank the oldest currently operating business in Baxter Springs and Cherokee County.
In the early 1900s, though not yet a “boom” town, Baxter Springs was enjoying comfortable growth.
The history of a bank is often the story of people; its founders, its shareholders, its employees and its customers. It is people who have made The Baxter State Bank the oldest currently operating business in Baxter Springs and Cherokee County.
In the early 1900s, though not yet a “boom” town, Baxter Springs was enjoying comfortable growth. The population had reached 1290, good farms and the Tri-State lead and zinc mines were soon to develop bringing new businesses growing opportunities.
In February of 1905, J.M. Cooper, Lillian H. Moore, Tom Moore, F.S. Greene, T.J. Morrow, E.L. McCarthy, W. VonWedell and C.W. Daniels met to organize a bank that would meet the needs of the expanding community. The bank was organized under state law, capitalized at $30,000, and with a directorate composed of well known, representative and successful businessmen and financiers, The Baxter State Bank opened its doors for banking business on April 21, 1905.