State Bank

The departure of longtime President Charles H. Smelser marks the end of an era for New Windsor State Bank, but its new management team is forging ahead with technology updates and plans for a second location."

RISING SUN -- In an era of banking conglomerates, the National Bank of Rising Sun is a small-town institution from another time, where customers are friends and shareholders are family.Dusty ledgers in its darkened basement record, in near-perfect script, the community's financial history: the loans, deposits and withdrawals of those who have have passed through the bank's double doors over the last 126 years."People sometimes call it the first National Bank of Rising Sun, and I always say `first, last and always,' " said bank president Joseph Cloud Jr. "We're known as the `big bank' because we have two stories, and the bank a block and a half from us only has one."

A lawyer for Sparks State Bank confirmed yesterday that an escrow account opened by the owner of the defunct Manor Builders Inc. and containing $20,000 has been frozen and that the bank plans to turn the money over to the Baltimore County Circuit Court for eventual disbursement.The lawyer, Jerry S. Sopher, said he expected the transfer to the court to occur this month after a court order is signed.Earlier, attorneys for the Chesapeake Bank of Maryland had filed garnishment proceedings when that bank foreclosed on Manor Builders and its principals, Palmer and Carol Williams.

One hundred years ago, people were without cars, railroads were the main form of transportation and one could hardly travel in the mid-Atlantic region without passing through Odenton.The town that most people cruise through on Interstate 97 or Routes 170 or 175 was the area's major railroad junction."I used to call it 'the little engine that tied it all together' -- with Baltimore, Washington and Annapolis," said Roger White, research director of the Odenton Historical Society.While Odenton now is mostly a commuter stop for business people headed to Baltimore or Washington, the society has been trying for nine years to preserve its rail history through photographs and biographical data, White said.

New positionsHechinger names commercial vice presidentHechinger Co. announced that Stephen F. Guaraldo has joined the company as vice president, commercial business. Formerly Northeast regional manager for W. W. Grainger Inc., he was also divisional vice president of commercial sales for Scott Paper Co. He will be responsible for developing an expanded commercial business program for the Largo-based hardware and lumber chain.Valu Food chooses human resources chiefValu Food has chosen Karen R. Strubel as its human resources coordinator.

Stockholders of Sparks State Bank overwhelmingly approved yesterday a takeover by Mercantile Bankshares Corp. of Baltimore, ending Kenneth T. Bosley's hopes of keeping the Baltimore County bank independent.Mr. Bosley, son of a former president of the bank, didn't own enough shares to change the outcome: 83 percent of stockholders voted in favor, according to Sparks attorney James J. Winn Jr. of Piper & Marbury. Approximately 13 percent of the stockholders did not vote.Mr. Bosley could not be reached for comment after the vote.

Odenton, as any MARC passenger knows, is one of the busiest commuter stops between Baltimore and Washington. Military uniforms are a telltale sign of the station's proximity to Fort George G. Meade. Parking is at a premium. And the amount of construction going on in Odenton-area subdivisions guarantees that commuting in future years is going to be much heavier still.Which is why we are delighted at the Odenton Heritage Society'sinitiative to turn the old Citizens State Bank, in the 1400 block of Odenton Road, into a snack shop for commuters.

Moscow. -- February on Zubovsky Boulevard: a treacherous sidewalk packed with fur-hatted legions, grimly marching through the fourth month of winter; diesel-blackened snow plowed into a moonscape at the curb; 10 rumbling lanes of traffic jam, wheezing trucks looming menacingly over tiny Zhiguli sedans.To a visitor who has been away for 29 months, since just before the red flag came down over the Kremlin, the first glance is as familiar as Lenin's stone-carved face. But the second glance reveals breathtaking change.

Mercantile Bankshares Corp. continued yesterday to add to its system of community banks by announcing an agreement to buy the Sparks State Bank, a five-branch Baltimore County operation with nearly $190 million in assets.Mercantile, parent of the Mercantile-Safe Deposit & Trust Co. and 20 other banking units, has agreed to pay 2.33 shares for each of the 771,300 shares of Sparks that will be outstanding after Dec. 31. That is when Sparks plans to pay a 20 percent stock dividend to its shareholders.

Maryland's state-chartered banks, buoyed by the continued drop in interest rates, posted sharply higher earnings in 1992, the State Bank Commissioner reported.The 69 state-chartered banks, two mutual savings banks and two trust companies earned a total of $177.5 million in 1992, contrasted with a loss of $68.5 million in 1991.The biggest participants in the turnaround were the Bank of Baltimore, which turned a $65 million loss in 1991 into a $16million profit last year, and Signet Bank/Maryland, whose $58 million loss two years ago was followed by a $9 million gain in 1992.

Stocks edge mostly higher; Microsoft drags Nasdaq NEW YORK - Major stock indicators climbed 11 percent in the past two weeks to their best levels since last fall as hopes for an economic recovery take hold. A series of strong earnings reports has many traders more optimistic about business conditions, while some are simply afraid to miss another rally. Over the past 10 days the Dow Jones industrial average jumped 947 points and broke through the 9,000 barrier for the first time since January.

Douglas de Sparre Browne, a banking data operations worker, ended his life Sunday. A Lake-Walker resident, he was 48. Family members said Mr. Browne was under a physician's care and had been suffering from depression because of health problems. Born in Baltimore, he was the son of Baltimore artist Robert R. Browne. He was a great-grandson of McKee Barclay, a well-known Sun political cartoonist in the early 20th century. Mr. Browne was a Towson Senior High School graduate and attended Towson University.

Electricity co-op plans sessions for potential members The Carroll County Chamber of Commerce Electricity Cooperative is working with the Taneytown and Mount Airy chambers to help businesses that receive energy from Allegheny Power. Information sessions will be held for businesses interested in joining the co-op in an effort to get the best price on energy when deregulation occurs. Businesses must be a member of one of the three chambers to join the co-op. Informational meetings for businesses that receive energy from Allegheny Power will be held as follows: Thursday from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. at Taneytown Senior Center, 220 Roberts Mill Road.

Admissions coordinator named at Carroll Lutheran Lisa Brosenne of Westminster has been named admissions coordinator at Carroll Lutheran Village, with responsibility for admissions to the Health Care Center and Diven House. She will give tours, take applications, give resident orientations and help with legal documents necessary for admission. A 10-year employee of the village, she has worked in a number of positions, most recently as part-time interim admissions coordinator while also offering clerical support.

R. Kent Wilson, a retired Harford County banker whose career spanned 35 years, died of heart failure Wednesday at Hart Heritage, an assisted-living facility in Street. The longtime Forest Hill resident was 90. Born in Baltimore, he was raised in Forest Hill, where his family had lived since the 1700s. After graduating from Bel Air High School in 1931, he attended Western Maryland College, now McDaniel College, and later worked as a deputy clerk for the Harford County Circuit Court for nine years.

IT LOOKED LIKE a run on the bank during a recent Monday morning at Elmer Wolfe Elementary School. But the pupils were in the school's cafeteria making deposits in their savings accounts at the Big Bad Wolfe Bank. It wasn't play money, either. "It's their money and they are proud of it," said Lisa Monthley, who helps coordinate the program for New Windsor State Bank. "It's different banking with your peers." The program helps pupils understand the meaning of saving money, Monthley said.

Networking group to meet for discussion of Web auction site The Business Networking Group will meet Wednesday at Fat Cat Cafe in Westminster. Networking will be from 11:30 a.m. to noon, followed by lunch and a business meeting. Annetta Spreen will discuss the Internet auction site eBay and how to use it. The group promotes personal and professional growth through networking and exposure to issues and concerns facing business professionals. Fat Cat Cafe is at East Main and Center streets.

25 years ago: County's Heritage of Agriculture to be Stressed--Publishing an agricultural history of Carroll county is the aim of a committee organized at a meeting in Westminster, according to Dr. Robert McKinney, former county commissioner, who was lected chairman of the group. Carroll County has enjoyed a great agricultural heritage that goes back to the days when the Indians cleared small areas of land for crops in our fertile soils. Many families have records of their farm which go back several generations, yet very little of this information has been brought together into a publication which would be available for everyon to enjoy reading, says McKinney.

RISING SUN -- In an era of banking conglomerates, the National Bank of Rising Sun is a small-town institution from another time, where customers are friends and shareholders are family.Dusty ledgers in its darkened basement record, in near-perfect script, the community's financial history: the loans, deposits and withdrawals of those who have have passed through the bank's double doors over the last 126 years."People sometimes call it the first National Bank of Rising Sun, and I always say `first, last and always,' " said bank president Joseph Cloud Jr. "We're known as the `big bank' because we have two stories, and the bank a block and a half from us only has one."

The departure of longtime President Charles H. Smelser marks the end of an era for New Windsor State Bank, but its new management team is forging ahead with technology updates and plans for a second location."