History…Our Roots Run Deep

In 1857, the first bank in Callaway County was established in Fulton. Known as the “Fulton Branch, Western Bank of Missouri,” it was not actually a branch as all stockowners and officers were local.

Banking at that time was nothing like today. Deposits were small and customers few. Bank drafts were rarely used and checks limited. Banking transactions often were conducted in gold.

As the Civil War raged in October 1861, directors feared the bank’s $50,000 in gold was at jeopardy from army raids. They agreed to hide the gold in a well on the west side of the Courthouse Square until peace was restored. The money remained there until 1865 when the well was pumped dry and all but one small coin was recovered. During this period, the bank was reorganized as the Callaway County Savings Bank, which was succeeded by The Callaway Bank in 1900.

Only one bank in Callaway County survived the Great Depression of the 1930s: The Callaway Bank. However, the building it occupied since 1868 was destroyed by fire. Two new buildings have been constructed on the site since that time.

In 1960, The Callaway Bank brought drive-in banking to Fulton with a separate downtown facility. A branch office was opened in southern Fulton in 1982. In 1993, The Callaway Bank merged with Steedman Bank to replace services lost to Mokane residents during the disastrous Missouri River flood. In 1999, we opened our first facility in Columbia at 1600 Chapel Hill Road, followed by our second facility in 2002 at 3200 West Broadway. Today, The Callaway Bank has eight banking offices in Fulton, Columbia and Mokane, 16 Automatic Teller locations and Internet banking.

As an independent community bank, The Callaway Bank combines old-fashioned values like fairness, respect and honesty with modern banking products and services. Our customers have been one of our greatest assets since 1857.