On April 30, 1918, the following ten citizens met at the Griffth Lumber Company building (building that is now occupied by the Iron Star Hall) for the purpose of taking steps to organize a state bank in Bertram, Texas. They were:  R. A. McCann, J. T. Hutto, W. C. Baker, W. H. Walker, Albert Ater, L. C. Warren, A. R. Smith, H. J. McGuire, Claude McBryde and George G. White.  R. A. McCann was elected chairman and George G. White was elected secretary of the meeting.  Motion was made and unanimously carried that a state bank be organized in the town of Bertram, to be known as the FARMERS STATE BANK of Bertram.  Directors were elected and a committee was appointed to purchase a suitable building spot and erect and furnish a building for the occupancy of the bank.  In 2008, almost ninety years later, FARMERS STATE BANK is still independently owned.  It has seen its customers through the stock market crash of the 20's, the depression of the 30's, the War years of the 40's, the crippling drought of the 50's and the regulatory upheaval of the 80's.  Today the bank lists 24 million dollars in deposits and holds a record of which any bank in any community could be justly proud.

On August 1, 1918, the bank opened in a two story brick building on Lampasas Street.  The original building still stands and presently houses the Seton Bertram Health Care Center and is owned by the Bertram Development Co., Inc.
In 1966 the bank was moved to its present location at the corner of Vaughan and Grange Streets.

The bank was organized under the Guaranty Plan with $25,000.00 in capital stock.  The charter was signed on May 14, 1918, with 250 shares of stock at $100.00 par value.  The Banking Commissioner certified the bank on May 17th, and it opened for business on August 1, 1918, with two employees, J. T. Hutto as president with a monthly salary of $25.00 and R. A. McCann as cashier.  An excerpt recorded in minutes of Farmers State Bank Board of Directors meeting of May, 1920, stated:

“The management was congratulated upon the facts
That from the last bank call of May the 4th this
bank showed several thousand more deposits than
any other bank in the county, and from the facts
that there were several banks in the town of
Bertram, and this bank being less than two years
old, it was considered a good record.”

On December 8, 1925, the bank amended its charter to change from the Guaranty Plan to the Bond Security System and continued under that system until 1933 when the bank became a member of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

J. T. Hutto was the banks first president in 1918, followed by R. A. McCann in 1921.  George White took over in 1922 and served until his death in 1947.  Edward White succeeded his father as president but upon an inactive status.  J. R. Adkerson succeeded George White as managing officer and acting vice-president until 1968 when he was made president, serving in that office until his retirement in 1971.  Thomas B. "Buddy" Hutto, grandson of the first bank's president, was made president in 1972.  Annie Dell Snow Taylor succeeded Mr.  Hutto on his retirement in 1987, and is the managing officer today.  She is a fourth generation Burnet County resident, has been with the bank since 1967, and was the first woman bank president in Burnet County. During the troubled years of the Depression over 9000 banks failed in the United States.  Despite this, the deposits at the FARMES STATE BANK increased from $97,386 in 1925 to $221,033 in 1935.  While so many banks were failing, the FARMERS STATE BANK was not just holding its own, it was prospering.  The drought of the 1950's was devastating to the farmers and ranchers in the Shin Oak Ridge.  Again the bank stood by its loyal customers and lent money, from $162,196 in 1950 to $312,428 in 1960.

Between year-end 1986 and 1991, the FDIC closed or assisted over 900 commercial banks with assets totaling about $170 billion.  That amount is roughly twice the total failed bank assets handled by the FDIC during the previous 53 years. During the same period of time, the FARMERS STATE BANK increased its assets from $12,143,969 in 1986 to $22,403,011 in 1991.

On July 19, 1922, George G. White, one of the ten organizers of the bank, was elected president and managing officer and served in that capacity until his death August 7, 1947.  His son, Edward White, was elected president (inactive) to fill the unexpired term of his father and served in that capacity until April 26, 1968.  At that time, Edward White was elected Chairman of the Board and served in that capacity until January, 1996.  He was succeeded as Chairman of the Board by his son-in-law, James D. Hoffpauir.  Mr. Hoffpauir served in that capacity until January, 2006, when he was succeeded by Lee Hoffpauir.  Lee is the son of James D. Hoffpauir and Glynel White Hoffpauir, the grandson of Edward White, and the great grandson of George G. White.  Glynel White Hoffpauir, daughter of Edward White, along with her children Sue Hoffpauir Harton and Lee Hoffpauir are presently serving on the board, making the third and fourth generations to serve the FARMERS STATE BANK board of directors.

At one time there were four other banks in Bertram.
      (1)  D. C. Reed & Co.
             Opened in 1904
              Bought by Farmers State Bank in 1934

      (2)  Potts & Ater Brothers
                   Opened prior to 1916
              Bankrupt in 1926

      (3)  Barton Bros. Bank
             Opened in 1916 or 1917
                   Transferred to First National Bank of Bertram in 1919

      (4)  The First National Bank of Bertram
                   Took over and succeeded Barton Bros. Bank
                   Bought by Farmers State Bank in 1928

Since opening in 1918, FARMERS STATE BANK has experienced two bank robberies. 
On the night of March 16, 1928, burglars entered the FARMERS STATE BANK building through a window and then dug a hole through the wall of the bank's vault.  The bank's safe was a 6000 pound spherical shape.  The burglars turned the safe over onto its front side and used a torch to burn a hole in the back part of it. This heated the metal so hot, and the hole burned was so small, they could not just reach into the safe, so they poured water into it, cooling it off and floating much of its contents up to where it was easier to reach.  Again on a night in early 1966, burglars entered the bank building through a back door, climbed to the top of the concrete vault and drilled a hole through the vault with a jack hammer.  After this occurrence, the bank's board of directors began plans to relocate and build a new bank building.  The new building was completed in August 1966, at which time the bank moved to its present location at the corner of Vaughan and Grange streets.

FARMERS STATE BANK is the hub of the community.  Not only do the officers and employees provide courteous and personal service, but they participate in many activities in the community.  For the past ten years FARMERS STATE BANK has sponsored "Santa's Workshop", which is held in the Johnnie Mae Wheeler Park on the first Saturday in December.  All types of games, activities and prizes, as well as a picture with Santa, are provided to the children of the community, all being free to the children.  Other activities include sponsoring the Annual Easter Egg Hunt, Easter Coloring Contest, Halloween in Down Town Bertram, Sponsorship of Local Baseball Teams, Teacher Back to School Appreciation Luncheon, Donations to the Volunteer Fire Department, the Oatmeal Festival, the County Livestock Show and other School Activities.

FARMERS STATE BANK is still independently owned, and the name remains the same as when it was organized in 1918, each somewhat of a phenomenon in the banking industry. FARMERS STATE BANK is a full service institution that provides its customers with the conveniences and services of larger banks in larger cities.  Under strong and conservative leadership, FARMERS STATE BANK has maintained a safe and secure institution for its customers.  It has survived and prospered for more than three quarters of a century, a period of time that has seen more changes than any other time in history. You'll find more than 130 years of total banking experience from the bank's ten employees, and from these employees, you will always receive friendly, courteous service, because taking a personal interest in every customer is how Farmers State Bank does business everyday.

The atmosphere in the bank can best be summed up in an excerpt from the board minutes in 1920:

“A general discussion of the condition of the
Bank was had, and the Directors expressed much
Satisfaction concerning the same, it being in
line and in some instances a great deal better
than other banks in this section with same
Capital Stock.

No further business appearing for attention,
the meeting adjourned, Peace and Harmony
prevailing.”

As the bank heads confidently into the years ahead, it does so with a sense of security and stability that has stood the test of time.

Back to the top