Farmers State Bank - Decatur, IL

Bank Information

Episode Type: Suspension → Closure
Bank Type: state
Start Date: January 1, 1929*
Location: Decatur, Illinois (39.840, -88.955)

Metadata

Model: gpt-5-mini
Short Digest: 0b20d36c

Response Measures

None

Description

Articles describe the Farmers State Bank as defunct and having suspended operations and failed; no mention of a depositor run in the provided text. Directors are contesting a suit after the bank suspended and failed. Date of failure/suspension not explicitly given; article dated 1929-01-28 refers to the bank as already defunct.

Events (1)

1. January 1, 1929* Suspension

Cause: Bank Specific Adverse Info
Cause Details: Bank had failed/was defunct leading to suspension of operations; specific insolvency details not given in article.
Newspaper Excerpt: Directors of the defunct Farmers State Bank will contest the suit ... The bonding company paid the loss of the county when the bank suspended operations and is now seeking to collect the money advanced from the directors.
Source: newspapers

Newspaper Articles (1)

1. January 28, 1929 The Edwardsville Intelligencer Edwardsville, IL

Article from The Edwardsville Intelligencer, January 28, 1929

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Article Text

DIRECTORS CONTEST DECATUR BANK SUIT Bonding Co. Attempting to Collect $100,000 Which Co. Had On Deposit. Decatur, III., Jan. 28-Directors of the defunct Farmers State Bank will contest the suit to force them to pay $100,000 which the county treasurer of Macon county had on deposit when the institution failed. The action was taken by the bonding company which handled the bond of the county treasurer. The bank directors allege that B. E. Coffman, the treasurer, entered into an illegal arrangement for the execution of his official bond and as a result, they are not legally bound under an indemnity bond protecting the bank deposit made by the treasurei. The bonding company paid the loss of the county when the bank suspended operations and is now seeking to collect the money advanced from the directors. The master in chancery of Piatt county, while recognizing the illegality of the bonding arrangement, ruled that this did not affect-the liability of the directors. The case was then appealed to the circuit court and may eventually reach the supreme court. The county treasurer airanged with a representative of the bording company to give his personal notes for the amount of the premium upon his bond as treasurer and county collector. These notes were placed in two banks which received the deposits of the county funds. The banks advanced money to pay the premiums. Interest upon county deposits were then credited upon the Coffman notes until they were satisfled and, after that, interest earnings, were to go into the county general fund. When the treasurer gave his personal notes for a portion of the premium, it became his personal obligation, the directors contend, and subsequent application of interest upon county deposits for retirement of the note indebtedness constituted illegal conversion of public money. The controversy is said to be new to the Illinois court ecords.