Provident Bank of New Jersey
Encyclopedia
Holding company
A holding company is a company or firm that owns other companies' outstanding stock. It usually refers to a company which does not produce goods or services itself; rather, its purpose is to own shares of other companies. Holding companies allow the reduction of risk for the owners and can allow...
for The Provident Bank. Originally established in 1839, The Provident Bank emphasizes personal service and customer convenience in attending to the financial needs of businesses, individuals and families in northern and central New Jersey. The bank offers a broad array of deposit
Deposit account
A deposit account is a current account, savings account, or other type of bank account, at a banking institution that allows money to be deposited and withdrawn by the account holder. These transactions are recorded on the bank's books, and the resulting balance is recorded as a liability for the...
, loan
Loan
A loan is a type of debt. Like all debt instruments, a loan entails the redistribution of financial assets over time, between the lender and the borrower....
, trust
Trust company
A trust company is a corporation, especially a commercial bank, organized to perform the fiduciary of trusts and agencies. It is normally owned by one of three types of structures: an independent partnership, a bank, or a law firm, each of which specializes in being a trustee of various kinds of...
and investment
Investment
Investment has different meanings in finance and economics. Finance investment is putting money into something with the expectation of gain, that upon thorough analysis, has a high degree of security for the principal amount, as well as security of return, within an expected period of time...
products through its network of 84 branches
Branch (banking)
A branch, banking center or financial center is a retail location where a bank, credit union, or other financial institution offers a wide array of face-to-face and automated services to its customers....
and its telephone and web-based banking services.
Corporate history
The Provident Institution for Savings was originally chartered by the State of New Jersey in 1839, becoming the first mutual savings bankMutual savings bank
A mutual savings bank is a financial institution chartered by a central or regional government, without capital stock, that is owned by its members who subscribe to a common fund. From this fund claims, loans, etc., are paid. Profits after deductions are shared between the members...
in the history of the state. The first President was John F. Ellis from 1839 to 1841. Co-founder Dudley S. Gregory
Dudley S. Gregory
Dudley Sanford Gregory was the first Mayor of Jersey City, New Jersey, and was elected as a Whig to represent in the United States House of Representatives from 1847 to 1849.-Biography:...
became President in 1841 and held the job until his retirement in 1874. Due to the general public mistrust of banks resulting from the Panic of 1837
Panic of 1837
The Panic of 1837 was a financial crisis or market correction in the United States built on a speculative fever. The end of the Second Bank of the United States had produced a period of runaway inflation, but on May 10, 1837 in New York City, every bank began to accept payment only in specie ,...
, it did not accept its first deposit of $227 until October 16, 1843. The Provident was run out of a room in Jersey City's Temperance Hall until moving to the office of Treasurer Peter Bentley
Peter Bentley (mayor)
Peter Bentley, Sr. was the fifth mayor of Jersey City in New Jersey. He succeeded Thomas A. Alexander. He served a single one-year term from April 1843 to April 1844. He was succeeded by Phineas C. Dummer....
in 1846. By 1875, Provident had assets of $3.5 million.
A run on the bank
Bank run
A bank run occurs when a large number of bank customers withdraw their deposits because they believe the bank is, or might become, insolvent...
occurred on May 12, 1882 following the suicide of Edmund W. Kingsland, the bank's Treasurer, in his office.