Bank of Whitesville - Whitesville, KY

Bank Information

Episode Type: Suspension → Closure
Bank Type: state
Start Date: January 1, 1954*
Location: Whitesville, Kentucky (37.683, -86.871)

Metadata

Model: gpt-5-mini
Short Digest: 7b66f340

Response Measures

None

Description

Articles state the Bank of Whitesville (KY) suspended/closed in 1954 after discovery of a large shortage (~$520,000) and later prosecutions for misapplication/falsifying records. No run is described; the bank suspended and remained closed.

Events (1)

1. January 1, 1954* Suspension

Cause: Bank Specific Adverse Info
Cause Details: Discovery of a large shortage of approximately $520,000 due to misapplied funds/falsified records; resulted in closure in 1954.
Newspaper Excerpt: the Bank of Whitesville, Ky., suspended on discovery of a large shortage.
Source: newspapers

Newspaper Articles (2)

1. April 18, 1955 Evening Star Washington, DC

Article from Evening Star, April 18, 1955

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Article Text

amount of loans classified as substandard," and the Bank of Whitesville, Ky., suspended on discovery of a large shortage. At the time the two banks closed they held 1,809 deposit accounts, FDIC said, totaling $990,283. The end of 1954 brought FDIC through its 21st year. During that time, it said, it had disbursed $330.75 million to protect depositors and terminate liquidations in a total of 424 insured banks. Of this, it said, FDIC by the end of 1954 had recovered $301.5 million and would recover a further $1.1 million taking account of interest payments and other factors, FDIC said, that would be a net loss of approximately $19.25 million.

2. May 17, 1956 Evening Star Washington, DC

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Article Text

Oilman Sentenced In Bank Fund Case OWENSBORO, Ky., May 17 (.P).-Oil Producer Leslie E. Owen was sentenced to five years in prison and fined $25,000 in United States District Court yesterday for misapplying funds of the now closed Bank of Whitesville. A jury deliberated an hour before pronouncing Owen guilty. He was charged with overdrawing his account to the tune of $168,000. The bank closed in 1954 when a shortage of $520,000 was discovered. Bernard Barrett, cashier of the bank at the time, is now serving a five-year prison sentence for falsifying bank records. Barrett testified during Owen's trial that he nad called the overdrafts to Owen's attention several times. Each time, he said, Owen talked optimistically about covering the shortage, but continued to increase his overdraft. Barrett said Owen offered him an oil lease for being "nice," but he turned it down. Owen testified yesterday he offered the lease because Barrett allowed his account to run over to some extent.