On November 5, 1903, nine prominent African American businessmen and community leaders gathered in the Nashville, Tennessee, law office of James Carroll Napier to establish a financial institution that would challenge the economic restrictions imposed by racial segregation. Their decision led to the founding of the One Cent Savings Bank and Trust Company, Tennessee's first African American-owned bank. Established during the Jim Crow era, the institution represented a significant achievement in Black entrepreneurship, financial independence, and community development. Its subsequent transformation into Citizens Savings Bank and Trust Company secured its place in American banking history as the nation's oldest continuously operating African American-owned bank.
The bank's establishment emerged from the discriminatory financial conditions confronting Nashville's African American population following Reconstruction. The collapse of the Freedmen's Savings Bank and Trust Company in 1874 had undermined confidence in financial institutions serving formerly enslaved Americans and their descendants. Meanwhile, established white-owned banks frequently denied Black customers equal access to credit and other banking services. These restrictions affected African American merchants, property owners, laborers, and entrepreneurs seeking capital for personal and commercial purposes.
Nashville's Black business community responded through organized economic cooperation. In 1902, Richard Henry Boyd, James C. Napier, and other influential leaders established a local chapter of the National Negro Business League, an organization founded by Booker T. Washington in 1900. The league promoted African American business ownership, professional advancement, and economic self-sufficiency. Its Nashville leadership provided the organizational foundation for establishing a locally controlled financial institution.
The November 5 meeting brought together Napier, Boyd, Reverend Preston Taylor, J. B. Bosley, E. B. Jefferson, J. S. Ewing, J. A. Cullom, Reverend William Haynes, and J. W. Grant. Napier served as temporary chairman. Participants agreed that charter members would contribute at least $100 toward the proposed bank's capital. Each attendee pledged that amount, while Napier offered to increase his contribution to $1,000 if necessary. Seven additional investors subsequently joined the enterprise, bringing its initial capital to $1,600.
The One Cent Savings Bank and Trust Company officially opened on January 16, 1904, at 411 North Cherry Street, now Fourth Avenue North, in space provided by Napier. Boyd became president, Napier served as cashier and manager, and Taylor assumed responsibility as treasurer and board chairman. These appointments united three established figures in Nashville's African American religious, commercial, and civic institutions.
The bank encouraged systematic saving, protected deposits, and supported business development. Despite its name, the minimum deposit was ten cents rather than one cent. Shares were available for five dollars, making ownership accessible to individuals with limited resources. Opening-day deposits approached $6,500, demonstrating substantial initial community participation. After six years, the institution held nearly $36,000 in deposits.
Its founders emphasized stability over rapid financial expansion. Boyd maintained that the bank existed to meet community needs rather than generate immediate wealth for investors. Napier promoted saving as a means of strengthening African American economic participation. Their policies reflected an institutional commitment to preserving deposited funds and developing financial confidence.
The bank also participated directly in civil rights activity. In 1906, it served as the depository for the Defense Fund of the Afro American Council, connecting African American banking with organized resistance to racial discrimination. This relationship demonstrated how financial institutions could support political advocacy beyond their conventional commercial responsibilities.
In 1920, the institution reorganized as Citizens Savings Bank and Trust Company. Two years later, it relocated to the Colored YMCA building on Cedar Street. Its continued operation through the Great Depression distinguished it during a period when numerous American banks failed. Conservative management and sustained community support contributed to its survival.
The historical significance of the November 5, 1903, meeting extends beyond the creation of a single financial institution. Nashville's African American leaders established a durable organization that expanded opportunities for saving, investment, and commercial development under segregation. Their achievement linked economic independence with the broader struggle for equal citizenship. Citizens Bank's longevity remains a lasting testament to the institutional leadership, financial cooperation, and determination of Nashville's Black community.
References / More Knowledge:
1. Lovett, Bobby L. “Citizen's Bank.” Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture. Tennessee Historical Society, 2018.
https://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/entries/citizens-bank/
2. Tennessee State University Library. “Citizens Savings Bank and Trust Company.” African American History and Culture Collection.
https://library3.tnstate.edu/library/DIGITAL/CITIZEN.HTM
3. Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. A Great Moral and Social Force: A History of Black Banks. 2022.
https://www.kansascityfed.org/AboutUs/documents/8585/A_Great_Moral_And_Social_Force_FINAL_01_2022_SNxEwn8.pdf
4. Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County. African American Historic Sites. Metropolitan Historical Commission.
https://www.nashville.gov/sites/default/files/2025-12/AfricanAmericanHistoricSites-scan.pdf
5. Tennessee State University Library. “James Carroll Napier.” African American History and Culture Collection.
https://ww2.tnstate.edu/library/digital/napier.htm
6. Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County. “Historical Markers: Notable People — James Carroll Napier.” Nashville Historic Preservation.
https://www.nashville.gov/departments/historic-preservation/programs/historical-markers/notable-people
7. R. L. Polk & Company. Polk's Bank Directory, Volume XXI, March 1905. Digitized by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, FRASER Digital Library.
https://fraser.stlouisfed.org/files/docs/publications/polks/pbd_190503_07_oregon.pdf