First National Bank (Philadelphia)

It operated independently until 1955, when it was merged into the Bank of North America and Trust Company, which now is part of Wells Fargo.

During the Civil War, the cash-strapped Lincoln administration, acting on the suggestion of Philadelphia financier Jay Cooke, sought to create a true national currency by fostering a class of strong banks entitled to print banknotes backed by the U.S. federal government.

[4] The bank's first president was Owen Wilson Davis, who on June 16, 1863, provided money to buy horses for the First Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry so it could deploy to meet the Confederate Army at Gettysburg.

In 1995, the building was acquired by the Chemical Heritage Foundation, which renovated it as a museum of the history of chemistry.

[6][9] As of February 1, 2018, the Chemical Heritage Foundation was renamed the Science History Institute.