Category:Allentown Trust Company

The Allentown Trust Company is a former bank that collapsed during the Great Repression. It opened in 1907, initially in the Commonwealth Building at 512 Hamilton Street. In 1910, it bought a lot on the northeast corner of Hamilton and Law Streets, and built a a two-story, 30-by-104-foot building. Of Greek Revival architectural design, it opened in 1911. Its first floor was the public bank room with tellers and workers at desk, while the second floor would house offices and a director's room. In June 1931, the bank had 12,000 depositors and one million dollars in assets.

The run on banks during the Great Depression of 1931-1932 affected the Allentown Trust Company and the bank was seized by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on June 18th, 1932. Allentown Trust was the third Allentown bank to fail in the summer of 1932. The former Allentown Trust Company depositors received some of their money eventually, taking until 1945. About half of its $1 million in liability was returned to depositors.

The other defunct banks were Jordan State Bank and Ridge Avenue Deposit and Trust Co. The failure in particular of the Allentown Trust Company started a quiet "run" on the Dime Savings & Trust Company and other banks as people, hearing rumors, and having become unemployed, began withdrawing their savings in order to survive. The Mayor of Allentown at the time, Fred Lewis issued a statement that month saying "the banking situation in Allentown is strong and no one need have any fears." But by early July the Dime was feeling the heat. Fortunately local bankers had formed what was called the Clearing House Association to foster mergers between troubled banks and more stable institutions. On July 3rd it was announced that the Dime was to merge with the larger Lehigh Valley Trust Company or be "consolidated."

The closed bank building was bought by Lehigh County Government at auction for $59,000, and set aside $25,000 for renovations in its budget. A Lehigh County grand jury recommended buying the bank building and moving offices out of the crowded Lehigh County Courthouse. The county treasurer, tax lien and delinquent tax offices occupied the first floor. The county commissioners, controller, veterans affairs and Americanization offices were among those moved to the second floor.

The county vacated the building in 1999. It was torn down in 2005 along with some other empty buildings and the Colonial Theater. In 2013, the property was purchased by City Center Corporation and today it is part of the Three City Center office building

Object location	40° 36′ 11″ N, 75° 28′ 08″ W	View all coordinates using: OpenStreetMap	40.603056; -75.468889