Banking in the Blood

My grandmother Naomi came from a long line of bankers.

Her grandfather James Post Speer worked for the Importers & Traders National Bank of New York for 49 years before he retired in 1916. ITNBNY printed money from 1865 until it was acquired in 1923 by the bank that would become JP Morgan Chase. The building at 246 Broadway was sold in 1928 and no doubt has passed hands many times since - it currently houses a TD Bank.

Family Archive: Importers & Traders National Bank of NY, 1907

Caption from the back of the photo

Great Great Grandpa James Post Speer & friend, Middletown NY 1935

246 Broadway circa 2019

Naomi's father Arthur William Speer also worked in banking (The Bergen County Bank of Rutherford - here's a write up about the bank from 1919) until his untimely death at 39 in 1927.

Great Grandpa Arthur "A.W." - Sure looks like a banker to me!

After their father's death, both my grandmother and her two younger siblings Joyce and Art would follow into the banking business. In the 1940 census, Naomi (age 25) is listed as a teller, Joyce (age 20) as a bookkeeper, and Art (age 18) as clerk - all in the banking industry, though there is no mention of which bank they were working.

Margaret Dotzert Speer with daughters Naomi & Joyce (l to r), 1945

I suspect that my grandmother was working in Manhattan in 1940, based on her letters from 1942-1946. She had mail addressed to her at the National Safety Bank & Trust Company. That bank was formed in 1928 and closed it's doors in 1951 when it merged with Chemical Bank (which ultimately was bought up by JP Morgan Chase - are we seeing a pattern here?). They also printed their own money until 1935.

National Safety Bank & Trust Company building circa 2017

NSBTC was considered on the cutting edge of banking at the time. It's fun to imagine my grandmother working the newfangled "Checkmaster" system by day and socializing with her girlfriends and beaus at night.

Want to learn more about the history of money in the US? Check out this, this, this, and this.

Brothers in Arms - Edward Gontarz, Mar 1944

Postmarked March 8, 1944

Edward Gontarz S 1/C

United States Coast Guard

U.S.S. Laurel

c/o Fleet P.O.

New York N.Y.

Miss Naomi Speer

72 E. Passaic Ave

Rutherford, New Jersey

USA

Dear Naomi,

     I hope you didn't miss my letters too much. Because I feel a little guilty for not writing you a little sooner. I do hope you'll understand and forgive me for being so lazy. After this letter I'll try not to be so lazy and write you more after.

     Let's see it's been nearly two weeks since I've wrote you last. Now let's see what happened. (Nothing I could write about that's interesting.)

     I've received I believe all your letters and so forth. I thank you very much for book of jokes and cartoons which you made by yourself. I also received the Reader's Digest for the month of Jan. So I think I'll get the Digest but still always be a little late.

     About those questions you want me to answer. I believe I've forgotten most of them so why don't you send me the questions you want to have a answer to, and I'll see if I can answer them. Now think hard and make sure you have all the questions down you want me to answer for you. Because I don't always like to answer questions but for one time I'll answer all for you.

     We already got paid a few times. But what good does it do a fellow up here. All you can do is look at the ??? and then put them back into your locker. So it'll depend on how long we stay out here to see just how good of a time I'll have when I get back to the States. The longer I stay here the more money I'll have when I get back.

     There was one thing I didn't tell you in my letters. No come to think of it I didn't write you or anyone at that time. About two weeks ago, my mother send me word that my kid brother was wounded in Italy. I was sort of worried a little thinking about it and didn't feel like doing anything because my mind seemed to be far away, thinking about him out there in Italy. Also at the same time thinking how my mother was taking it back home, Maybe worrying her head about it. As my mother always does when something happens to one of us.

     But then four days later I received another letter. This one was a little better. It told me that my brother was only wounded in the arm and he was in no serious condition. That he was also doing very nicely in a hospital in North Africa.

     After this I felt a little better and now feel like myself. I think I shall close. But! Don't forget the questions because I would like to see just what you want me to answer.

Love

Ed G

P.S. I still don't read over what I write. If there are any mistakes, they are just going to be there.

USCG Laurel - Edward Gontarz, Jan 1944

Edward Gontarz SZ USCG

USS Laurel

c/o Fleet Post Office

New York, NY

January 18 1943(*1944)

Miss Naomi Speer
National Safety Bank & Trust Co
1384 Broadway
New York, New York

Dear Naomi,

     Again I must start a one sided letter. Because I still haven't received any mail since I left the states.

     Because of this, I simply can't find anything to write about. Around here it's called no mans land because a man shouldn't be here. Because if he is he's all alone. With the exception of 15 Army nurses there are no women which you can even look at.

     We don't get any mail here until a ship comes from the states. This might be once a week or maybe once a month. I don't know if our mail is taken out faster than this. I sure hope so. At least I can write to people back home telling them I am OK. But if sure would be perfect if the mail would come to us once in a while, so we could know how everyone else back home is making out.

     By the way, if I am correct your birthday comes the 28th or so of this month, doesn't it? Well if it does I'll ready have your birthday present. It's a little something I picked up down here. But I don't believe I can send it on account it will show just where we are. And this is against regulations. Sorry but I think you'll have to wait until I get back to the States.

     In one of your letters you asked me my home town's address. This was if you didn't hear from me

cont'

you would write and ask my mother about me. Well this is OK by me. But one little lope note. You see if you don't hear from me neither will my mother. Anyway the next time I see you, you'll maybe find out everything about me, because I believe we'll see a lot of each other. This is the way my mind runs. How about you? Will you spend some of your time with me? Of course this will all be in about 6 or 8 more months before we hit the States again.

     I sure would like to hit New York City in the summer time. Then you could show me all of NY we didn't see the last few times. If I have a weekend at the time we'll spend it somewhere out at a lake or in the mountains somewhere.

     What's going on back at the States? Here we don't get a newspaper or nothing. Not even the Readers Digest. Maybe this is due to the fact we can't even get any mail.

     Well I believe I'll end this letter because lack of space. I hope you get both sheets at once to read. With this I'll sign my name and keep thinking of you.

Love

Ed Gontarz

* Information on the Laurel

In Port - S. Gilchrist, Aug 1944

Liverpool. Aug. 4th. 1944.

My Darling,

     At last the voyage is over, and we are safely back in Britain again. Already the ship is wearing that air of pathos peculiar to ships who have paid off one crew and not yet signed on another. Most of the officers and all of the men, have already gone on leave, but a few of us, including, of course, John O. and myself, are standing by. During the day it is absolute bedlam on board, with the cargo workers on deck, and the shore fitters in the ngine room, but at night it is very quiet. I am the only engineer on the ship at present, and it makes me feel quite important to have about thirty shore engineers hanging on my every word. This of course has its disadvantages, for it prevents me from getting ashore, but I dislike this place intensely anyway. In about a week, we shall be getting under way again, to go to another British port, a bit nearer my home this time and when we get things squared up there, I shall be leaving the ship for good. I expect to be home for a few months, for I shall have to go to the Marine College, to put in some grinding, prepatory to attempting my examination for my ticket. I'll get that ticket or damn well bust in the attempt.

     This is all just talk, trying to give you an idea of how things are with me at present, now I'll tell you the really important things. Tonight, or as its now about midnight I guess I should say last night, about 8-30, when things had quitened down, I went to the wireless room and started to phenagle about the short wave set, to see of I could pick up an American station. I was in luck, very definitely so, for in no time at all I was listening to a replay of a broadcast called "Waltz Time" with your old favorite Frank Munn, shouting his head off magnificent fashion. It reminded of that night when we practically wore the dance floor of the "Roosevelt" right down to the tarmac. He was singing a particularly lovely tune, which I have never heard before called "Long ago and far away" when John O. came back aboard, shouting his head off in his usual boorish way. I was all wrapped up in a terrific cloud of nostalgia thinking of my own not so long ago and not very far away, when he came up and turfed me out. It transpired that he had good reason for this aforementioned shouting, for he had a huge pile of letters under his arm. I gave a hand to sort them out, although most of our lads, being Londoners dashed home immediately they were paid off, as they were quite naturally all worried to hell about the flying bombs. But most magnificent of all, there were about a dozen letters for me, Five were from you, the latest one being decorated with what John O. described when I showed him them (from a safe distance) as goddam posies. So, for the last couple of hours I've been having a splendid time reading them. I can't understand why you havent been getting my letters, for I have written from every port several times, Air-letters, V-mails, the whole blasted works, in the hope that at least some of them would get through. I have had several letters from you during the trip so it seems to be a one way hold up.

     The rest of the letters were from my sister, and I'll be very glad to see the folks again. If you are writing to me within the next couple of months it would be a good idea to use my home adress, for I expect to be home that long anyway. Then Heigh-ho for New York City, by hook, crook, or political corruption I'll be seeing you, just try and stop me. For I love you, my darling.

Yours till then,

Gil