Sevierville, TN – March will pass into April this year, just as it as always has for the past 100 continuous years that Sevier County Bank (SCB) has consistently contributed to the steady but increasingly significant economic engine, known as Sevier County, Tennessee. SCB was founded in 1909, survived wars, the Great Depression, floods and recessions, all while expanding to eight physical branches, a myriad of electronic delivery systems and more than $415 million in assets.
Sevier County Bank is older than the Federal Reserve, income taxes, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the FDIC, but as the bank celebrates its 100th anniversary, its president recognizes that not everything has to change to succeed. “It’s the same Sevier County Bank name, headquartered on the same piece of ground operating with the same original banking philosophy and the same $30,000 in capital,” says R.B. Summitt, II. “In other words, all through the years, the bank’s capital has grown in step with its assets to its current level of over $45,000,000. No new stock has been sold or issued and the Board never considered taking bailout money.”
Although Sevier County Bank was not the first bank to open in the area, it has outlived all the others and is the longest-standing bank in Sevier County. It is also the oldest business in the county. The Bank of Sevierville opened a few years earlier, but had to close during the Great Depression. As a result, the government created the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and SCB’s directors voted unanimously to join as a charter member at the first opportunity in 1933.
“It has been enlightening and at times very touching to read through the original, hand-written minute books and ledgers, seeing behind the numbers to the decisions made to work with farmers, businesses and their families through good times and bad, finding more than one occasion where the bank forgave a debt but allowed the family to keep their livestock so they could eat,” says historian and author, Patsy Galyon Bradford.
In an attempt to capture the stories of Sevier County Bank, a written history of the bank and its impact on Sevier County was commissioned. Treasured Memories, 100 years of Sevier County Bank is now available. Triggered by actual items removed from his old treasure chest, a kindly grandfather shares tales from his own life with his grandchildren, intertwined with actual local and world history.
When Sevier County Bank’s longtime president and cashier Sanders Atchley died, the Board recruited Ross B. Summitt who came to work on July 1, 1949, continuing to do so to this day. In November of that same year he and Mae (Kimbrough) married; they have resided in their Sevier County home and contributed to the success of their bank ever since. “I’m pleased the bank has made a difference over the years, but I’m surprised at all the customers who tell me how we helped them through a rough patch or hard times,” says Ross B. Summitt. “You know really it was all our loyal customers and good employees that have made the bank what it is. If you don’t take care of your own customers and employees, you won’t last.”
SCB Senior Vice President Jo Anne Williams agrees with her father, “Our customers tell us they want real people they can talk to, a real hometown bank where decisions about their finances are made on the spot, not hundreds or thousands of miles away. You know they mean it when they bring their children and grandchildren in to open their accounts!”
Sevier County Bank continues to be defined as “well-capitalized”
Chairman Ross B. Summitt noted that discussions and efforts have been underway for over two years to properly honor the past 100 years but the significant things that kept on surfacing are still the very same basic principles that nearly everyone is advocating: trust, dependability, conservative but understanding and flexible banking practices and services and most importantly, focusing on local needs. The chairman says, “The bank’s board, officers and employees are honored but humbled to be recognized for these 100 continuous years of service and all we can do is our very best to provide our customers and the people of our communities with another 100.”
To mark its 100 consecutive years, the bank is hosting several events and weekend long refreshments. The public is invited to stop by any Sevier County Bank office during the week of March 9. There will be refreshments, gifts and fun for the kids. Mrs. Williams noted, “It’s our way of saying ‘thank you’ to our customers for letting us serve them and be their ‘real hometown bank.’”
For more information about Sevier County Bank, please visit our website at www.SevierCountyBank.com
