Marathon County, Wisconsin - Chapter 22, 1913

Chapter 22

Financial Institutions: The First Xational Bank - The Marathon County Bank - National American Bank - Citizens State Bank - Wisconsin Valley Trust Company - Marathon County Building-Loan & Investment Co. - The Great Northern Life htsurance Co)npan\ - Employers' Mutual Liability Insurance Company of Wisconsin.

The First National Bank Of Wausau

This bank succeeded to the old, well established bank of Silverthom & Plumer, which last named finn did a brokerage business in \\'ausau as early as 1866 and started out as a regular bank of deposit and discount in 1869, and under the finn name of Silverthorn & Plumer carried on the banking business until 1882, when the growth of its business made it desirable to take out a charter as a national bank. It was organized as a national bank in December, 1882, the capital increased to $50,000, which was eagerly taken by Wausau business men. The business of the bank kept growth with the growth of Wausau and Marathon county, and as a consequence the capital stock had to be increased several times; its stock was quickly subscribed each time it was offered to the public, and the continued success and the growth of the bank is the best evidence of careful, upright business management. The capital was increased in 1884 to $100,000; in 1903, to $150,- 000; in 1905, to $200,000; in 1912, to $350,000.

And Represextative Citizens 369

This bank was organized under the present name on December 7, 1874, and opened for business January i, 1875. It succeeded to the banking business of J. A. Farnham, who came to W'ausau in the early fifties, and in a few years carried on a private banking business under firm name of "The Bank of the Interior" until it merged in the Marathon County Bank in 1874. The Marathon County started out with a capital of $25,000 in the bank building, a solid brick erected by J. A. Farnham for the use of the bank, the first solid brick building in Wausau, which was torn down when the present banking house was erected in its place in 1892. Only after nine years, on January 6, 1883, the Marathon County Bank increased its capital to $60,000, then ten years later in 1903, to $75,000, and on June 11, 1912, to $100,000.

This bank commenced business as a state bank under the name of German American Savings Bank in the year 1890 with a capital of $75,000. It organized as a national bank in 1892, increasing its capital to $100,000. In 1903 it increased its capital to $200,000 and on the ist of April, 1912, it increased its capital to $300,000, and at each time the stock was eagerly subscribed and taken up by Wausau people. It has at the present time a surplus of $130,000 and undivided profits in the sum of $17,000. The growth of the business of the bank is best illustrated by the statements of the years following the organization, to wit :

The officers of the bank are : Benjamin Heinemann, president ; Walter Alexander, vice-president ; C. S. Gilbert, vice-president ; board of directors : Walter Alexander, W. H. Bissell. Herman G. Flieth, Charles S. Gilbert, Benjamin Heinemann, D. J. Murray, John D. Ross, C. J. Winton, Cyrus C. Yawkey.

The Citizens State Bank

It is the youngest bank in Wausau, prosperous and by reason of its location on the west side of the river is very convenient for the people on that side living somewhat remote from the old established banks.

Officers and directors: President, S. M. Quaw; vice-presideni, C. A. Barwig; cashier, \V. E. Hudtlofif; directors, A. H. Clark, Anton Mehl, G. A. Oswald, Fred. \\'. Genrich. August Marquardt, Henry Ruder, C. J. L. Zahn.

Wisconsin Valley Trust Company

This company was organized in 1906 by ^Messrs. A. L. Kreutzer, C. B. Bird, and M. B. Rosenberry, who for fifteen years before that had been practicing lawyers, and as such had practical experience in the making of loans and investment of money for their clients in this county.

The trust company plan of handling investments, closing up estates, managing guardianships, and all matters requiring the services of a trustee, is the established and approved method for doing those things. Most investors do not have enough money so that they can devote all of their time to investing it, therefore they do not have the knowledge or experience in such matters. Naturally they cannot perform the high character of work required in such instances, with the proper skill and experience necessary to get the best results.

Then there are a large and continually increasing number of cases where parties desire to deposit money or make investments upon some trust, i. e., upon an arrangement by which the money is to be paid or the property managed according to certain fixed ideas of the owner. For example : He may wish to set aside a certain sum of money and have the income from it, or if it be property, have it managed and the rents and profits paid at stated intervals to the children or other relatives, providing for the payment of the principal to them in installments as they increase in age and business experience, thereby avoiding the danger which so often results from heirs receiving the whole heritage at once and being inexperienced, soon losing it by unwise investment or unsafe business management. For all such purposes trust companies are organized. It has become the established manner of doing business. To fill the demand for such an institution in Wausau, the above individuals - who in their law practice had been doing just such things - organized the Wisconsin Valley Trust Company.

The company was incorporated in 1906 with a capital stock of $50,000. Subsequently Mr. John J. Okoneski, who became a partner in said law finn, and Mr. Otto G. Fehlhaber, formerly cashier of the Bank of Edgar, and before that clerk in the United States land office, became members, and these five constitute the board of directors. Mr. Kreutzer is president of the company and Mr. Fehlhaber its cashier.

In September, 1907, they commenced the erection of their fine office building at the corner of Fourth and Scott streets, now occupied by the company ; the growing needs of which will require that more and more of the space in this building will be used from year to year for the needs of the company.

The laws of Wisconsin require such companies to deposit 50 per cent of its capital stock in cash, bonds, or securities with the state treasurer as a pledge of security to their customers, and also create a double liability on the stockholders and require the reserve, periodical examination and all other limitations imposed upon banks. In addition to this, trust companies are not permitted to receive deposits upon demand, but only upon time, and are also required to invest their funds only in real estate mortgages or loans where approved collateral is deposited as security. In both cases, the loan must not be more than 60 per cent of the value of the land or security. These well known safety requirements, together with the established business reputation for ability and integrity of the members, explain the success which this company has had in the conduct of its business, and the rapid growth which it has enjoyed.

The last monthly statement of the company shows the amount of its loans to be $391,637.54, its deposits to be $422,535.60, and its capital, surplus and undivided profits to be $73,417.71. This institution is filling a large place in the community and has become one of the established financial institutions in this county.

While its stockholders are themselves lawyers, yet they abstain scrupulously from using the company as a means of diverting law business from others to themselves. They realize that most persons have their own choice of what lawyers they wish to employ, and in the management of all estates and trust aflfairs, they always employ to do the legal work, such lawyers as their customers wish to handle the matter. All of the lawyers of the county are fast finding it to their advantage when they have estates to be closed up, or other matters within the piovince of that company to handle, to have the company appointed executor of the estate or trustee, knowing that the matter ean be better handled and will be more efficiently and economically done than is business where the executor or trustee must be an individual, little experienced in such matters.

This corporation is doing business under the laws of the state of Wisconsin, mainly as a building and loan association. It was incorporated on January 29, 1902, and commenced business March i, 1902. The business of the corporation is to loan or advance money to people desirous of building themselves a home, at a low rate of interest and on easy terms, giving from five to ten years in which to pay, although the borrower has the choice to pay at any time sooner if he wishes, and payments are to be made in small monthly installments. Small payments can be made from earnings of a workman much easier than a large payment once or twice a year, and such small payments instill the desire of the borrower to save his means and foster the spirit of economy so essential for a man of small income.

Many of the workmen of Wausau have availed themselves of the advantages offered by this corporation. When a person owns his building lot in the city and wants to borrow the money to build himself a home thereon instead of living in rent, this corporation will advance him the money at a low rate of interest, upon condition that the money loaned be used in the building, and no other purpose, the intention being that the money thus obtained should be used for the improvement of the property. Since the organization of this company, hundreds of workmen's houses have been built in that way and paid for, and many workmen and their families enjoy now the comforts of a home of their own, which they would not have acquired otherwise.

This institution has become very popular and its loans are sought for not only by workmen, but also by professional people and business men of smaller means, who wish to build, but do not want to withdraw the necessary capital at once from their business.

The interest charged averages about 4^^ per cent after all payments are made. The attorney for the corporation is Neal Brown, whose work consists mainly in examining the abstracts to see that the applicant for a loan has good title to his real estate, which examination is made at the cost of the corporation.

The securities held are mortgages for loans made, in the amount of $163,- 275, all of which is the unpaid balance of advances on small residences. Its first board of directors were: Walter Alexander, H. G. Flieth, Anton Mehl, P. F. Stone, Walter E. Curtis, F. A. Hecker, Charles J. Zahn, John F. Lament. R. Goodrich, G. D. Jones, and I. A. La Certe. A. A. Bock is secretary; his office is located in the center of the business portion of the city, which is an important point considering the many monthly calls that have to be made at his office in paying the monthly installments.

The Great Northern Life Insurance Company

This company was incorporated May 7, 1909, with a capital stock of $200,000. The initiative for the organization of the company was taken by Wausau citizens which accounts for the fact that all its officers and managers are resident Wausau citizens. Every policy is guaranteed by the capital of the company, the legal resen-e and surplus. The annual premium income of the company is now in excess of $100,000 a year and the insurance in force exceeds the sum of three million dollars. The reserve held by the company on outstanding contracts amounts to $104,240.28. The assets of the company amount to $357,692.98. It has a surplus in excess of its capital and all other liabilities of $44,535.81. The territory in which the company is doing business is Wisconsin and Michigan, and this will be extended in the very near future to Minnesota.

The company offers a definite amount of life insurance at a fixed price and guarantees every dollar of insurance value that the premium payments can safely provide. There are no estimates, no promises of dividends, and no alluring inducements. The actual dividend received in this company is the difference in the premium paid for insurance in the Great Northern Life and what would be paid in another company furnishing estimates of dividend profits in the future. The policies of the Great Northern Life are simple, easily understood agreements to pay the face of the policy in the event of death, or if an endowment, to the insured, when the time for such payment arrives. The provisions and conditions of the policy are few in number and are plainly stated in language which cannot be misconstrued. The values are clearly stated in figures, and are as liberal as safety and cost will permit.

If a loan is wanted or the policy surrendered for cash value, or an exchange wanted for a paid-up policy, or insurance allowed to continue without further premium payments as extended insurance, all the figures are definitely

There is no forfeiture, no contest, no law suit. The policy is incontestable - it is controlled by the person, and he can change the premium payments at any time to meet his convenience.

The one and only uncertainty if one carries a policy in this company is : When will he die ? But for this one has the certainty that whenever one does die, his policy will be promptly paid in full to the beneficiary.

Officers and directors: President, Hon. Xeal Brown; vice-presidents, C. C. Yawkey, W. H. ]\Iylrea, William A. Fricke; secretary, B. F. Wilson; treasurer, C. S. Gilbert; assistant secretary, John A. Sullivan; assistant treasurer, H. G. Flieth ; medical director, A. B. Rosenberry, M. D. ; general counsel, Neal Brown; general manager, William A. Fricke.

The workingmen's compensation act in ^^'isconsin is known as chapter 50 of the laws of 1911, going into effect September i, 1911. It was enacted for the purpose of preventing or reducing the causes of dependency or poverty caused by accidents, death or physical injury to workmen engaged in industrial pursuits, which under modem factory conditions with their large numbers of men. working with powerful and complicated machinery and engines, are unavoidable. In enacting this law, the state of Wisconsin and other states were following the states of Europe which had enacted similar laws vears before they were enacted in this country. The rule of liability of master and sen-ant as applied a hundred years ago had often worked hardship and injustice under present conditions, but the courts felt it was their duty to adhere to the existing rule until they were changed by statute, which was effectually done by the act above referred to. By this law the liability of employers towards their employes was greatly enlarged, and in order to protect themselves from great individual losses the employers must combine so as to divide the losses, and at the same time enable them to charge up the insurance as part of the cost of the running expense of the mill or factory.

The Employers' Mutual Liability Insurance Company of Wisconsin - home office at Wausau, Wisconsin - was organized September i, 191 1, on the mutual plan to provide the employers of Wisconsin who accepted the provisions of the Workmen's Compensation Act with insurance, furnishing the compensations and medical and surgical aid required of the employer to be furnished employes for injury or death resulting from industrial accidents. It was the first company organized in this country for the purpose of providing the compensations of the law and solving the problems of workmen's compensations; the initiative was taken by Wausau employers of labor.

The first year's experience of the company, ending August 31, 1912, shows that at a premium rate of only 40 per cent of the rate charged by stock casualty companies this company provided all of the compensations required by the law, paid all management expenses, and was enabled to declare a 15 per cent dividend credit to its policy holders out of the casualty earned premium. The policies of the company now cover 25,000 lives, and up to November 30, 1912, 2,494 industrial accidents have been reported, 16 of which temiinated fatally, and the payments made by the company chargeable to compensation have amounted to $48,733.22. and the company has on hand available funds for the payment of claims, $56,288.92. The annual premium income of the company now is in excess of $100,000.