"Several people are in a bank lobby. The bank is Brookhaven Bank. No date is known." -- Library caption.
Turns out the library caption is incorrect. I am told by a Furlow descendent that the man second from left in the first photo is Albert Brown Furlow, and he is standing in the interior of the First Commercial Bank, which was located where the State Bank now sits. The bank was founded in 1887. It is unclear when the building was constructed (see below for a postcard depiction). The bank was refaced with limestone at some point in its history. The original facade on the side street remains.
Note the brass spittoon in the second photo.
I remember that both local banks, Brookhaven and State, in the 1950s and '60s had their own signature smell, much like a kindergarten, bowling alley or Tillotson's Service Station. Mother always warned me to NOT play with the shiny brass spittoons, which, coupled with the smoke of cigarettes and cigars, imparted a certain pungent aroma that intermingled with the smell of paper money and made visiting the banks an olfactory sensation for all -- little children in particular.
Both photos are from the Don Jackson collection at the LLF Library.
My parents used State Bank, so when I was a child, I started a savings account there, and I well remember the fragrance. Banks were definitely a lot more impressive back then.
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