Mechanics Bank
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Slogan: Where Relationships Matter
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| Private | |
| Industry | Banking |
| Founded | 1905 |
| Headquarters | Walnut Creek, CA |
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Number of locations
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30 |
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Key people
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| Products | Financial services |
| Website | www.mechanicsbank.com |
Mechanics Bank is a community banking financial institution headquartered in Walnut Creek, California It was founded in 1905 and serves markets in Northern California. It operates in the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento areas. The bank has over $3.5 billion in assets and over 500 associates at 30 retail branches.
Mechanics Bank was originally chartered as The Iverson Bank and Trust Company, founded in Richmond in 1905. It was renamed as The Mechanics Bank in 1907. Shortly after it was renamed, Edward M. Downer joined the organization, and by 1919 he had purchased a controlling interest and soon became president.
E.M. Downer (1869–1938) was a prominent official in the town of Pinole who created the "Bank of Pinole", the precursor to Mechanics Bank. In 1889 at the age of 20 E.M. Downer was appointed as Transfer Agent and Telegrapher for Southern Pacific Railroad's Pinole Depot railroad station. The depot became the town hub and he subsequently opened a laundromat and started the The Pinole Weekly Times newspaper. Later the depot was selected as the location for the infant city's first post office and Downer became the first postmaster. After the community incorporated in 1903 he became the first city clerk and afterwards mayor.
The beginnings of the bank were in 1905 when E.M. Downer began offering financial services to his acquaintances from a floor safe in his office. This was a great convenience to the residents because the closest bank at the time was at the Contra Costa County seat at Martinez, 13 miles (21 km) away. In 1915 he became second vice president and later, in 1919 after purchasing a controlling interest, he became president until his death in 1938. He was succeed by his son E.M. Downer, Jr. in 1939 who served as president until 1978.
After starting the Bank of Pinole in 1905, E.M. Downer joined Mechanics Bank in Richmond. The Downer family has led Mechanics Bank through most of its history, starting with E. M. Downer who ran the Bank through the 1920s boom years when Richmond was a major West Coast industrial center. Mechanics Bank served Standard Oil, Santa Fe Railroad, the Ford Motor Company and their employees during this period. Downer also successfully led the bank through the Great Depression while many other banks succumbed.
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Wikipedia