First American National Bank
Industry | Finance and Insurance |
---|---|
Founded | September 1883 [1] |
Defunct | October 1, 1999 [2] |
Fate | Merged |
Successor | AmSouth Bancorporation Regions Financial Corporation |
Headquarters | Nashville, Tennessee, USA |
Products | Financial services |
First American National Bank was a subsidiary of First American Corporation, a financial institution based in Nashville, Tennessee, that served the states of Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia and Virginia. It was headquartered in the First American Center in downtown Nashville.
The bank began, in Nashville, as the American National Bank and later (1930), merged with James E. Caldwell's Fourth and First National Bank, to become First American National Bank. In 1971, construction of the
Its name and logo disappeared in December 2000 when it was acquired by AmSouth Bancorporation, an institution based in Birmingham, Alabama, that was slightly smaller in size. First American had operated as a fully owned subsidiary of AmSouth for most of 2000. First American was sold after a series of unprofitable mergers, including one with Jackson, Mississippi-based Deposit Guaranty Bank that proved to be a hurdle the corporation could not clear financially. Deposit Guaranty was fully integrated into First American, but kept its name. This allowed FANB to gain significant market share in Mississippi, Arkansas, and Louisiana, though it did not operate these branches under the corporate brand, nor under recent the Iowa purchaser.[7]
First American's demise ended Nashville's storied history as a strong financial center. It, along with Third National Bank (now a part of
Until 2005, AmSouth Bank continued First American's former tradition of having the highest market share in Nashville, however it was surpassed by
Sponsorships
First American was very visible in the Nashville area and carried a large load of sponsorships, most notably the now-closed First American Music Center, to which it held naming rights for just one season before selling to AmSouth. First American also prided itself as the "official bank" of several Nashville-based sports franchises, including the Tennessee Titans, Nashville Predators, Nashville Kats, and Nashville Sounds. Following the purchase, AmSouth/Regions opted to let each of these sponsorships expire without renewal.
Other "First American" banks
There are several regional banks around the United States that now carry the "First American" name. One in particular, in Mississippi, has adopted the full name "First American National Bank". None of these regional institutions are affiliated with the former First American National Bank or AmSouth Bancorporation.
References
- ^ Sarles, Judy (October 8, 2000). "Nashville's banking legacy fades with time". Nashville Business Journal. Retrieved July 19, 2007.
- ^ "AmSouth Completes Acquisition of First American; Emphasis Shifts to Smooth Transition for Customers". PR Newswire. Retrieved July 19, 2007.
- ^ Guilday, John E. (July 1977), "Sabertooth Cat, Smilodon floridanus (Leidy), and Associated Fauna From a Tennessee Cave (40DV40), the First American Bank Site", Journal of the Tennessee Academy of Science, 52 (3): 84–94
- Nashville Tennessean, p. 2
- ^ "Science: Tiger in the Bank", Time, p. 53, August 6, 1973
- ^ Nashville Predators Timeline - Sports News Story - WSMV Nashville Archived September 24, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Iowa credit union to buy 7 First American Bank locations". The Des Moines Register.