With Mt. Dewey in the background, the Bank of Alaska opened its vault to Wrangell in 1916. A century later and just across the street, the branch – now a Wells Fargo – celebrated its centennial last Friday.
The local Wells Fargo branch celebrated a century of business in Wrangell last weekend, with a community appreciation day held on Friday.
Patrons to the bank and curious bystanders were able to check out displays charting the location's history, including old advertisements and newspaper cutouts, photographs, ledgers and other artifacts.
Wrangell's First Bank of Alaska opened its doors in May 1916, across the street from the bank's present location next to Ottesen's. After doing a turn as the Stikine Branch of the First National Bank of Ketchikan, it
eventually became part of the National Bank of Alaska. The bank moved to a new location on Front Street's west side, and became part of the Wells Fargo network when NBA was bought out in 2000. Proceeds from its sale went on to benefit the Rasmuson Foundation, which provides grants for a variety of cultural and civic projects.
At Friday's open house, current and former employees and customers of Wrangell's branch were invited to add their stories as well, with a memory board set up to put down their thoughts and experiences.
"It was really exciting because we had a lot of people in town who had worked for Wells Fargo and Bank of Alaska," said bank manager Aleisha Mollen. "A lot of them came in and shared their old memories."
More than 200 miles away in Skagway, its Wells Fargo branch held a similar celebration. The location was established in March 1916, a couple of months before Wrangell.
People were also invited to enter in for prize drawings, enjoy some refreshments, and pick up a complimentary planner.
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