Mu - NSW Country

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representing Officers and families of
The Commercial Banking Company of Sydney Limited
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Mu - NSW Country

Macksville to Mittagong		Click here
Mudgee	2007 2009 2015	Opened 1866 (36th Report); Closed 1867 (39th Report); Opened 1874 (53rd Report); 1893 January Listed in 89th Report; 1934 Listed in Century of Banking. 2007 photo from SMH - CBC Bank, Town Hall and Rural Bank form a group that is Heritage Listed: A fine group of late Victorian and early 20th century buildings which combine to give much dignity and interest to this civic-commerical nucleus of the town. As such they are particularly relevant to the adjacent St. John the Baptist Churchyard and the nearby Roman Catholic Church group and for these reasons deserve preservation. 2009 Attatched is a photo from Google Earth of ex-Mudgee branch, sourced by Geoff Chapman. 2015 April photo by John Ness
Mullumbimby	1923 2005 2007 ?	1919 The Bank opened it's Mullumbimby branch on 13th October in temporary premises in Nelson's building in Burringbar Street. The first Manager was J W Kelp 1922 a permanent site was purchased. 1923 photo is of the new building in 1923 from "The Branswick, another river and it's people" c 1988 Jim Brokenshire The present building was erected in 1923 and trading continued until WW11. 1934 Listed in Century of Banking 1940s because of rationalisation of banking, the branch closed and the business was transferred to Bangalow. The Branch re-opened after the war. All of the above information sourced by Geoff Chapman. 2005 September photo by David Jobson. 2007 ? Photo by Bob Handel.
Mulwala	1894 Circular 1992	Mulwala NSW, about 40ks west of Corowa 1888 Opened (80th Report); Manager's list: 1888/92 - W. Gill 1892/94 - E.H. Street 1893 January Listed in 89th Report; 1894 Circular No. 43 dated 1st March advising closure. 1894 closed 15th March (closed 1893 91st Report) and the business transferred to Corowa. 1992 June 16 photos of the branch by David Jobson just prior to demolishment. 1993 October demolished.
Murrumburrah 344 Albury Street	1954 photo in Current Accounts July page 33 2008	A "twin" town with Harden. With both towns often referred to as Harden-Murrumburrah. CBC's branches at Harden and Murrumburrah are within 2km of each other, split by the Murrimboola Creek. Much of the early banking from Murrumburrah and Harden areas was done with Young and Yass branches. To safeguard their money from bushrangers many settlers cut their bank notes in half, sending one half to their bank on one mail coach and the other half of the next coach. 1875 Oriental Bank was the first bank to open at Murrumburrah. 1880 Australian Joint Stock Bank opened at Murrumburrah. 1881 October 13 Yass Courier reported: “Murrumburrah Oriental Bank Manager Mr Burnett died at Burrowa after a buggy accident.” Both Oriental and AJS Banks fell victims to the land boom and droughts. 1884 Oriental Banking Corp went into Liquidation. 1884 May 6 Bank of NSW secured premises in Murrumburrah. 1884 May 7 Chas C Tucker CBC Young Manager opened CBC Murrumburrah in Criterion Hotel, as Bank of NSW was fixing their sign on premises secured the previous day. 1884 Opened (72nd Report); 1884-5 CBC acquired Oriental Banking Corp premises & accounts as well as some OBC staff from branches of Murrumburrah & adjoining OBC branches in nearby towns. Oriental Staff coming to CBCofS included Oriental's previous Murrumburrah Manager Mr Henry Clement Tingcombe, who became the 1st permanent Manager of CBCofS Murrumburrah. 1885 AJS Bank at Murrumburrah closed. 1887 Mr Tingcombe was appointed Manager CBCofS Narrandera 1887Sep 13 Mr Ernest Meares Aged 26 another ex-Oriental officer was new Murrumburrah CBCofS Manager (from July 1954 Current Accounts Pg 32 & 33). 1893 January Listed in 89th Report; 1932 Bank of New South Wales Murrumburrah closed. Bank of NSW later re-opened and re-closed to become a restaurant. 1934 Listed in Century of Banking. 1943 The Union Bank Murrumburrah closed because of wartime restrictions after operating for a number of years 1954 photo in Current Accounts July page 33. 1970 Murrumburrah listed in Branch Managers List 032-150 1978 Sep Murrumburrah not listed (Murrumburrah business had been transferred to Harden branch - there had been over the years quite a bit of jealousy between the two towns but apparently all this disappeared when just about everything duplicated in Murrumburrah ended up just having one representation in Harden). 2008 GoogleEarth photo of Murrumburrah branch as identified by Geoff Chapman and verified by Curator of local history museum who advises: 1874 Orient Bank opened in T & G Barnes store 1875 moved into new purpose built premises. 1884 CBC opened 6th May in 2 rooms of the Commercial Hotel On 1/6/1884 moved to Orient Bank premises. (This would have been on taking over the business and premises of that Bank at, among other places, Murrumburrah and Bungendore).
Murrurundi 64 Mayne Street	2004 2006 2006 GS	In Murulla St, just before the intersection with Mayne St, is a suspension bridge for pedestrians over the river.The two-storey blue building just over the road and a little further north was erected in 1865 as the Joint Stock Bank but became the CBC from 1870-1938. John Beer understands that AJSBank occupied this building from 1865 till 1872 after which CBC occupied it till 1930s. 1872 March 8 Agreement between AJS Bank and CBCofS: AJSB agree to transfer to CBCofS the business of AJSB at Murrurundi and Muswellbrook. CBCofS agree to purchase premises safes fittings office furniture sundries for 3,000 pounds and receive the business in both towns with deposits transferred to CBCofS with business to be handed over on 1872 March 11. 1872 Opened (48th Report); 1893 January Listed in 89th Report; 1934 Listed in Century of Banking. 1937 building erected. From 1938 CBC occupied premises located South of the small bridge in the middle of the town. The last one was that which the Bank occupied at the time of the merger, and it being the one with entry to the rear yard being through a large gate in the centre of the building." Geoff Chapman. 1997 NAB closed. 2004 photos (4) of premises for sale by First National Real Estate Scone. 2006 November Photo of the first CBC in Murrurundi by Frank Maundrell, who advised "This is a photo of the building that answers the description of the old Joint Stock Bank in Murrurundi, apparently used as the first premises for CBC. It seems to be now used as a private residence and has no sign of having formerly been used as a Bank. It is in Mayne Street, directly opposite Murulla Street, which is the location of the small pedestrian suspension bridge. There are no other possible candidates, if the building was in that vicinity." 2006 Villa on River Strawberry Emporium, Murrurundi Located in the heart of Murrurundi's CBD, this lovely 320 sqm Neo-Georgian 1937 restored bank building has a large retail chamber, office and Chubb vault. The two storey residence has four bedrooms, sunroom, living/dining room, 2 bathrooms, timber floors, airconditioning, fireplaces, designer kitchen with walk-in pantry plus a laundry. Enjoy the large lawn garden leading down to the private park on the banks of the Pages River. This property is offered on a WIWO basis. $585000. 2006 This is a recent photo of CBC Murrurundi, 64 Mayne Street by Frank Maundrell. "The Branch is now closed and the premises are used as a clothing emporium, known as Strawberry Emporium. The large door on the left is a driveway that gives access to the rear of the building." 2009 Haydon Hill gallery and shop well worth the stop: 2012 February Kevin Greenaway was visiting Graeme Stevenson at Tweed Heads last Sunday and he showed Kevin some old photos he had of a few Branches Kevin thinks he worked at, including this one.
Murwillumbah	1880 1907 1920 Armstrong 2005 '2022	Murwillumbah (population 7,500) is on the Tweed River 32km south of the Queensland border, the main town of Tweed Valley population 23,300 (from Current Accounts January 1969 Pg 42-43) Opened 1880 February 4th (64th Report); The bank's first premises seen in this early photo were rented from The Colonial Sugar Refining Company. Supplied by Ian Holston. 1893 January Listed in 89th Report; 1899 Murwillumbah CBCofS building erected 1907 September 16 Murwillumbah CBCofS burnt down with four other banks, three large stores and other business houses 1908-09 Murwillumbah CBCofS rebuilt at cost of 4320 pounds c.1920 Playing tennis. Annotated on back “Commercial Bank of Sydney, Murwillumbah” Thanks to Tweed River Regional Museum for use of photo. The court was directly behind the current branch of the Bank in between Main Street and Proudfoot’s lane. 1934 Listed in Century of Banking. 1953 new premises were completed Front and rear photos by Ron Armstrong. 2005 Plaque celebrating 125 years of CBC/NAB 2008 Ian Holston advised that from Murwillumbah Branch, agencies were conducted at: a) CHINDERAH - In old Turnock's Store - Now demolished b) MOOBALL - At Kelly's Store near the Victory Hotel. Site is now occupied by a gift shop 2022 August Ian Holston advised: Murwillumbah branch to close after 142 years. First Bank in Town It has been brought to my attention that the above branch is to close in November 2022. Closest Branch will be Coolangatta, I assume that Kingscliff Branch must also be closing. They do not even mention on Website that they are reopening Tweed Heads South on September 2 2022. Bloody hopeless. When they closed South Tweed Heads some years ago they told their customers to either Bank at Coolangatta or Murwillumbah. After they lost the Plaque that celebrated 100 years of Banking which I was present at in 1980 with Bill Green and Ken Suttie. I wrote to the then MD on the occasion of `125 years and they put a new plate up in the entrance., see attached photo Cheers Ian. Interesting fact about Murwillumbah is that the recent census revealed that Murwillumbah increased its population by a larger percentage than the rest of the Tweed Valley. 2023 July Ian Holston: At long last the missing piece of the Murwillumbah jigsaw. Built 1889 destroyed on purpose by a large fire in 1907 to save the Eastern end of the Main street of the town. (See photos) The Mayor Orders burn the Bank! The Year was 1880, the hub of the Tweed was shifting from Tumbulgum to Murwillumbah. The main street was beginning to look like a prosperous township; the Eastern side was owned by the CSR Company (the Knox family). The Bank rented small premises from CSR for 82 pounds per year on the 4th February 1880, small they were only two customers could fit into the Bank at the one time. The first Manager was a Mr Waugh and he remained in charge to 1889. During his time a block was purchased where the present recently closed branch of NAB stood for 275 pounds. In 1889 the Bank built large wooden premises; the residence was located next to the Banking Chambers. They lasted only 8 years as the building was burnt down in 1907 to save the southern end of the town. Only the strongroom remained. It was reported all the Bank’s securities, safe custody packets and valuables were placed in sacks and removed to a safe place, where staff and friends mounted an all- night guard. Cash and Treasury holdings were left in a safe in the Bank’s remaining strongroom. In 1889 Mr Wilson succeeded Mr Waugh as Manager he remained Manager for 31 years. He acted quickly and by the morning after the fire had secured temporary premises and by Tuesday the books and money balanced. These temporary premises were used until a new two storey brick building was completed with premises above the branch, on the original sight at a cost of 4,320 pounds and occupied in 1909. In 1920 Mr J B H Smith became Manager followed by K L Cameron until 1934 when Mr Tom Gibson was appointed Manager and stayed until he retired in 1956. Tom Gibson had joined the Bank as a Junior at Murwillumbah Branch in 1909. He watched as the old building was demolished and the present structure opened for business in 1952. Mr G M Ind replaced Mr Gibson and was manager for 13 years until 1965. Followed by Mr R P Beatty until 1974 then Mr K R Foulcher until 1982. The NAB closed the Bank on the 10th November 2022 after 142 years of Banking in the town.
Murwillumbah article	pre 1907 1907 1952	The Mayor Orders: Burn the Bank! The year was 1880 and the Hub of the Tweed was shifting from Tumbulgum to Murwillumbah. The Main Street was beginning to look like the beginnings of a prosperous town. Although a fair bit of the southern side of Main Street was owned by the Colonial Sugar Refining Company it was gradually being sold as blocks. Banking interests were coming on the scene and on the 4/2/80 the Commercial Banking Company of Sydney decided to open a branch in the town. For £82 per year the bank rented small premises from the C.S.R. Co. and small they were - for it was said when two customers were in the building with the two bank officers the bank was full. If a third customer came along he had to remain cool, calm and collected in the scorching sun until he could squeeze in. Mr Waugh was the first manager until 1889 and during this time an allotment was purchased in Main Street for £275 (where the present National Bank is today). A few years later a part of this block was sold to H.A. Solomons for £250. But it was not until 1899 that the bank erected large wooden premises of handsome design on the new site. These premises only lasted eight years because of the disastrous fire that destroyed 65 shops in the town in 1907. There was no fire brigade and as the fire swept from building to building on both sides of the street threatening the whole town, teams of men destroyed shops with axes to try and stop the fire - but it was useless against the wind blown inferno. So after quick discussions among men of influence it was decided to make a fire break near Broadway. The most suitable spot was the Commercial Bank which was adjacent to a small vacant block. So it was decided to burn the bank. It was reported that all the banks securities, custody packets and valuables were placed in sacks and removed to a safe distance where staff and friends mounted an all night guard. Cash and treasury holding were left in a safe in the banks strongroom. Soon everything was ready and the Mayor (AId. Peter Street) gave the order to fire the bank. Solomons store (now J.H.Williams) on the windward side was draped with blankets from the gutters down and were kept wet by a bucket brigade. The weary fire fighters watched in awe as the fires raged towards each other. It is now an historical fact that the back burning from the bank saved the rest of the town towards the river. Mr Wilson succeeded Mr Waugh as manager in 1889 and remained manager for 31 years. He acted quickly and by the morning after the fire had secured temporary premises and by Tuesday the books and money balanced. These temporary premises were used until a new two storey brick building was completed on the same site at a cost of £4320 and occupied in 1909. In 1920 Mr J.B.H. Smith became manager followed by Mr K.L. Cameron until 1934 when Mr Tom Gibson took over and stayed manager until 1956. Tom Gibson was a junior officer in the bank when it was being built in 1909. After serving in other branches Tom returned to Murwillumbah and as manager he watched the same two story brick building being demolished to make way for a new modern building in 1952. This structure still serves the bank today and to this day is regarded as a splendid building. Although there have been many internal alterations. After Tom Gibson, Mr G.M. Ind. became manager for 13 years followed by R.P. Beatty until 1974, then Mr K.R. Foulcher until 1982. In 1983 the old Commercial was swallowed up by the National and the Commercial of Sydney was gone forever. The Commercial bank operated an agency at Chinderah from 1923 until 1961. Another agency operated at Mooball from 1934. it closed during the war years, then re-opened and finally closed in 1976. The branch at Tumbulgum which opened in 1885 closed in 1893 when Murwillumbah developed further. The Commercial Bank gave 103 years of service to the Tweed before the amalgamation with National. In later years managers have been Shean, James. Nosworthy, Cooper. Laing and the present manager is Wayne Edwards. Photo 1 C.B.C. Bank on right of Solomon's Store. All buildings on left of C.B.C. (circled) were saved. Photo before fire in 1907. Photo 2 CBC Murwillumbah after the 1907 fire. Photo 3 Premises from 1909 to 1952.
Muswellbrook 51 New England Highway	1963 2008 2008 2018	1872 March 8 Agreement between Australian Joint Stock Bank and CBCofS: AJSB agree to transfer to CBCofS the business of AJSB at Murrurundi and Muswellbrook. CBCofS agree to purchase premises safes fittings office furniture sundries for 3,000 pounds and receive the business in both towns with deposits transferred to CBCofS with business to be handed over on March 11. 1874 In course of erection (51st Report); 1893 January Listed in 89th Report.; 1934 Listed in Century of Banking 1963 photo by Ian McAndrew of Muswellbrook Branch in 1963 with Mike Cassidy residence above and the rear of the branch. 2008 photo from GoogleEarth identified by Geoff Chapman and Wayne Campbell 2008 October photo by David Jobson 2018 For sale by expressions of interest.

Last modified: 06/08/2023 04:32 PM