914. Bank of California (San Francisco, CA)

Bank Information

Episode Type
Run → Suspension → Reopening
Bank Type
state
Start Date
November 1, 1886*
Location
San Francisco, California (37.780, -122.419)

Metadata

Model
gpt-5-mini
Short Digest
ddce456a87f98635

Response Measures

None

Description

Multiple articles describe a heavy run on the Bank of California in November 1886 that forced the bank to cease payments (suspend) and precipitated the suicide of president William Ralston. Other accounts note that capital injections by leading financiers (Senator Sharon, D.O. Mills and others) covered deficiencies and the bank was enabled to resume operations a few days later. There is some conflicting language in the pieces (some describe the bank as having 'ceased to exist'), but the contemporary accounts also state directors and financiers recapitalized the bank and it resumed—hence classification as run → suspension → reopening. Dates are taken from articles' accounts (Ralston's death and failure occurred mid-November 1886).

Events (3)
1. November 1, 1886* Reopening
Newspaper Excerpt
A meeting of the directors was called...Senator Sharon headed the list, and in a few days the bank was enabled to resume.
Source
newspapers
2. November 14, 1886 Run
Cause
Bank Specific Adverse Info
Cause Details
Heavy withdrawals precipitated by revelations about mismanagement/financial weakness around William Ralston and related attacks in the press; panic among depositors
Measures
Paying tellers continued payments while coin was brought from other banks (Latham carted coin to Bank of California to pay depositors) until payments ceased
Newspaper Excerpt
street in front of the bank became a dense mass of people...the paying teller had orders to continue while there was anything to pay with...the ponderous doors of the bank were seen to swing outward and close
Source
newspapers
3. November 14, 1886 Suspension
Cause
Bank Specific Adverse Info
Cause Details
The run exhausted available funds/cash and the bank closed its doors amid the panic following revelations and the president's suicide
Newspaper Excerpt
The Bank of California...had ceased to exist.
Source
newspapers

Newspaper Articles (5)
1. November 28, 1886 The Salt Lake Herald Salt Lake City, UT
Article from The Salt Lake Herald, November 28, 1886

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Article Text

street in front of the bank became a dense mass of people, through whom terror-stricken depositors forced their way. By sympathy the run extended to the smaller banks, and one by one they closed their doors. Latham, the manager of the Bank of London and San Francisco, tried to save Ralston. All the spare coin in his bank was carted up to the side entrance of the Bank of California, and almost as fast as it came in at the side door it went out at the front. The paying teller had orders to continue while there was anvthing to pay with. When half past 2 o'clock came, and payments were still being made, the excitement was intense, and bets were freely made that the bank would stand the pressure. The paying tellers were nervous with excitement as the long hand of the clock slowly climbed around. Five minutes, ten minutes, fifteen minutes. It only wanted a quarter to 3 when the ponder ous doors of the bank were seen to swing outward and close with a mighty clang in the face of the vast crowd that thronged the street. The Bank of California, the greatest financial institution on the Pacific Coast, had ceased to exist. The people went wild. All the evening papers got out extras. In the bank parlor Ralston received the reporters and correspondents, of whom there was a perfect mob. He was ghastly pale, and leaned with his elbow on the mantelpiece. "The Bank of California, gentlemen", he said, "does not owe a single dollar it cannot pay. An attempt has been made to crush me, but it will not succed. The bank will resume in a day or two," This was about 4 p. m. A little after 5 p.m. his lifeless body was taken out of North Beach, and it was known that he had committed suicide. He had ostensibly gone in to take a swim, and although there never was a doubt in the public mind that he had taken his own life. the coroner's jury found an open verdict. The public excitement now grew to fever heat. The friends of Ralston were loud in their denunciations of the Bonanza people and of the Call and Bulletin. The editorial rooms of both papers were barricaded with piles of paper. behind which were hidden some armed police officers. The militia were called out and held in readiness at their armories. The police charged several mobs who assembled to gut the offices. Reporters for these papers held their lives in their hands. A mass-meeting was held at Union Hall, to sympathize with the family of the "murdered Ralston." It was attended by thousands, and addressed by leading men of parties. Colonel W. H. L. Barnes, the attorney to the bank, and a personal friend of the dead man, begged the people for his sake to be quiet and not to disgrace his name by riot. Things simmered down a little, and better counsel began to prevail. Those who witnessed the funeral of Ralston will hardly forget it. Never had such an imposing sight been seen n California. The cortege was preceded by a battalion of cavalry and three regiments of infantry, with arms reversed. Then came the order of Odd Fellows, then the clergy of various denomis ations, then the hearse and pall-bearers, among whom were Senator Sharon, P. 0. Mills, Peter Donahue, the banker; D. is. Colton, the railroad magnate; Judge Hoffman, of the United States Court, and some twenty other equally prominent citizens. Behind the hearse" walked the clerks of the Bank of California, the regents and faculty of the University. the members of the Chamber of Commerce, the membe:s of the Stock Exchange, and of the Pacific Stock Exchange. representatives of the press. trade organizations and citizens in thousands on foot and in carriages. Was there ever seen in the world such a sight?-Comment and Dramatic Times.

2. October 19, 1887 The Clifton Clarion Clifton, AZ
Article from The Clifton Clarion, October 19, 1887

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"KING OF THE COMSTOCK." Sharon's Course When the Bank of California Suspended. [New York Journal.] In 1863 Senator Sharon was induced to take the agency and general supervision of the Bank of California in Gold Hill and Virginia City, Nev. Here he formed the acquaintance of Mr. Ralston, at that time one of the brightest heads in the mining districts. Mr. Sharon was considerable of a mining expert, and felt that the Virginia and Gold Hill mines were not as remunerative as they should be. He had examined every mine with the greatest care, and had become a mining expert as well as a banker. He called to his aid, however, the best judgment of men of mining experience, and made a most thorough survey of the mining properties in which he had become interested, and finally determined to drift for a strange ledge. A drift was at once undertaken and prosecuted with prodigious vigor. That drift developed not only a new deposit of ore, but it very soon exposed to view the "King of the Comstock." From that time Mr. Sharon became the recognized leader in enterprises of the greatest magnitude on the Comstock, and these were managed with such adroitness and skill that he was regarded as the financial chief of the Pacific Coast. His name was added to the directory of the Bank. All went swimming on in the high tide of wealth and 1 osperity for nearly ten years. Then came a day when gibes and sneers were hurled against the directors of the bank. Its depositors with bated breath and lowtoned voice and scarcely audible whisper, told the sad tale of ruin, beggary, and misery unmeasurable. The great Bank of California had suspended. And Ralston, its President, had drawn the veil upon a life that had lifted enterprise into exultation and reared monuments of grandeur on either side of his pathway. The citizons of San Francisco have not forgotse.1 that dreadful day. The streets around the bank were packed with men and women, and yet not one word of censure was expressed so pronounced was to affection for Ralst and the es teem in which the directory W: e held. Soon the small door was opene Senator Sharon stepped through it "If the sidewalk, and for a few moments cast a steady look upon the mass of human faces turned upon him. His face, habitually mobile and imperturbable, expressed for a moment that touch of sympathy that can never be told in words. The multitude seemed to understand it, and raising his hat with more the purpose of admitting the cool air to his throbbing brain than in salutation, he turned with a step and manner full of resolution and walked away. A meeting of the directors was called for that evening, and in a vigorous speech Mr. Sharon advocated that all should put their hands into their pockets and make up any deficiency in the bank's capital. Senator Sharon headed the list, and in a few days the bank was enabled to resume. Thus was the bank put upon its feet, and to Senator Sharon was justly ascribed the success of the venture. Several years later Mr. Sharon was elected United States Senator from Nevada. He is quiet and unpretentious in his demeanor, and few would recognize in him the owner of the 'King of the Comstock" and other millions of property.

3. January 24, 1888 Omaha Daily Bee Omaha, NE
Article from Omaha Daily Bee, January 24, 1888

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reached the ears of the principal stoekholders, and they demanded an accounting. The demand was entirely unexpected by Ralston, and he found no escape except in humiliating his family. There was a meeting of the bank directors, and everything showed that the doors would have to be closed and that Ralston would figure as little better than a defaulter. For nearly a decade he had been the most prominent figure in the local mining stock market. and by his genius he had more than once got the better of the rising bonanza kings, Flood and O'Brien. It was their influence that precipitated the crash, and Ralston knew that he could hope for no mercy from these men, who represented antagonistic circles, and were powerful enough to control the money market of the city. Ralston was an intensely proud man, and he couldn't bear the stigma of failure after his "Napoleonic" career for so many years. So, on the morning after this decisive meeting, he went to the baths at North Beach to take his usual plunge. He seemed in unusually good spirits, and swam out in the bay with lusty stroke, when he stopped a moment and was seen to go down. When assistance reached him he was dead. Many at the same time claimed his death was accidental, but as he was in the prime of life, there is no question that it was deliberate suicide. The news of his death caused intense excitement, and caused a panic in financial circles. A disastrous failure was averted mainly through D. O. Mills, now of New York, who came to the rescue of the bank with his fortune and influence. Ralston's estate fell into the hands of Sharon, who derived large profits from the settlement of it. It is a singular coincidence that the recent retirement of the bonanza king (Flood) from the Nevada Bank, caused by his heavy losses in the wheat deal, occurred on the fourteenth anniversary of Ralston's death and the failure of the Bank of California, which Flood was mainly instrumental in bringing about.

4. July 31, 1888 Morning Appeal Carson City, NV
Article from Morning Appeal, July 31, 1888

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# THE OLD CALIFORNIA. "The Underaker," in the Stockton Mail, gives a terrible review of the history of the California theater and John McCullough. The theater was a temple erected to Eros and Venus, where the monied men of San Francisco worshiped. The drama there was merely the cloak to the big brother run by McCullough, who was the agent of his monied backers. The men and women who cast their talents and beauty at the shrine lived a fast and merry life, and kept up the terrific pace until they drifted off into the suicide's grave, the hospital and the mad house. After the Bank of California failed, the house went down the scale with a rush, until it was the resort of tight-rope performers, female minstrels and flash troupes, and the curtain dropped for the last time on a dime novel play, where the leading performer was a horse. How sadly the bust of old Shakespeare looked down on the degeneration of the place during the last decade. If the masks, tinsel and tawdry trappings of the old ruin could but mouthe its inner history, what a tale of lust, debauchery and wrecked homes would startle San Francisco, and not startle it much, either, for the inside was well known, it always having been the custom of the male characters in the behind-the-scenes dramas to come out on the street corners and saloon fronts and boast of their performances. A woman who was foolish enough to be ruined inside those walls was known to the town inside of twenty-four hours.

5. May 1, 1892 The Morning Call San Francisco, CA
Article from The Morning Call, May 1, 1892

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would not want the city to pay, but if they had the indorsement they could get the money otherwise and build the railroad. It was also represented that the undertaking was a very difficult one. Both Mr. Fitch and Mr. Pickering said emphatically at once that they could not support the proposal, and that they did not believe that the city would indorse the bonds. They refused to favor the scheme in any way, and said that nei- ther would they sit quiet while it was being pushed into acceptance. At this time it was not understood by the proprietors of the Bulletin and CALL, nor by the public, that the railroad managers were not going to pay the interest or anything else on the Government bonds which had been issued for the Central Pacific Railroad. This throws some light on their proposal in respect to the city. Messrs. Stanford, Colton and Hopkins at once said that they would give up the project if the Bulletin and CALL proprietors would not favor it, because they knew they could not carry it. They did not push it further, and nothing more was heard of it. # HOSTILITY TO THE BULLETIN AND CALL. After a little while the company went on with their railroad construction to the south. They had Carr in politics, carry- ing everything for them he could, and they threatened towns into giving assistance by proposing to run past them and leave them in the lurch. The railroad people became very bitter toward the CALL and Bulletin. When the failure of the Bank of California took place the railway had its agents at the meeting held at which the Bulletin and CALL were denounced, and these agents were active in trying to urge the commission of outrage. The railroad people were quite willing to see the proprietors damaged in their enterprise, and all because they had opposed the city being controlled in the interest of the railroad. When the litigation took place between Hunt- ington and the Colton estate many let- ters were published. In these letters Hunt- ington's frankness came out in a very clear light. He was quite anxious, as he said, to have the Bulletin and CALL "caved down the bank," an expression which was open to the one meaning that he wanted to see the papers destroyed in their influence. Several letters conveyed the same meaning. Always since that period the railroad com- pany has never been favorably disposed toward the Bulletin and CALL. These papers have, however, treated them impar- tially. They got the railroad out of politics and were quite satisfied when that was ac- complished. As long as the company kept out-only a brief period, it must be said- they were contented. # OPENING THE NEW LINE. The company sent out invitations to cele- brate the driving of the last spike on the line between San Francisco and Los An- geles. Messrs. Fitch and Pickering were invited to the ceremony, although they had been somewhat at sword's point with the company. Mr. Pickering accepted the invi- tation. During that celebration the news- papers everywhere expressed gratification at the enterprise. As far as legitimate rail- road management went there could be no opposition. For a time matters went on smoothly, and there was no return of trouble until the railroad company again en- tered politics. Whenever this has occurred the CALL and Bulletin have felt bound to protest and arouse opposition. The public, however, have seemed willing at times that the company should run the State. Al- though efforts have been made to stir the community into realizing the position they are in, from being injured by the system of nominations and elections, they have been singularly apathetic. There never was a time when the Bulletin and CALL have not been ready to espouse and advocate the in- terests of the people; and there never was a time when they have neglected their duty in this respect. Politics became so degraded here when Buckley was the boss controlling everything four years ago that some change had to be made. Notwith- standing the change the condition of politics is foul enough at this moment. The Bulletin and CALL have no objections to Stanford & Co. carrying on legitimate railroad enterprise as they please, but these papers consider it a duty to help the people to obtain a fair and proper election of officers, and in respect of railroad manage- ment to obtain fair treatment in rates. They want the State to be served by officers who are not under the control of a few per- sons. At this moment the State appears to be in a spirit which will insure these ends being attained. It cannot be doubted that our merchants and the community generally will eventually secure a proper reduction of freights and fares, and by a vigorous effort the railroad may be made to realize that its interest lies in keeping aloof from politics and attending to the legitimate business of traffic. # MR HUNTINGTON'S OPINIONS. Mr. Huntington in recent remarks referred to the Nicaragua canal, and said we do not need it, and that prob- ably it never would be built. He is a man who has always been frank in his utterances, and he may wish to be consid- ered candid in this, but it surpasses the un- derstanding how he can entertain the belief that this waterway would not be of the greatest advantage to the Pacific Coast. Quite irrespective of the railroads, whether they are on a fair basis or not, the canal would be of the greatest importance to commerce, and so it will prove when opened. Mr. Huntington's influence will not prevail in this matter. Again, as to the Chinese, Mr. Huntington must know that the Chinese are of no benefit to any one on this coast except a few persons who want to get labor cheap in the manner of slaves, and railroad men who make money by carrying the Chinese as passengers. Had we a large population of Chinese everything would be corrupted and the State would be immediately in- jured. What Mr. Huntington has said on these points is diametrically opposed to the interests of the Pacific Coast. The best ad- vice that can be given to the Southern Pacific Railroad is to give up politics abso- lutely and try to serve the public honestly and well as a carrying company.