A reader sends this photo, taken Saturday morning along the southbound Southwest Fwy. feeder, of what the Chase branch in Westwood has been hiding from you all these years — or the branch signage, at least: The original logo of the Texas Commerce Bank, which was established here at 9525 Bissonnet back in 1974 and which merged with Chase in the ’80s. The more up-to-date signage must have fallen off or been removed, notes the reader, who was a little moved to see that well-preserved and clean-cut Helvetica: “It brought back a lot of memories.”
Photo: Swamplot inbox
Westwood? Someone probably stole the front of the sign.
It could be symbolic harbinger of the Chase Bank stank becoming karmically exposed and undone in the near future and smaller independent banks coming back.
Are you sure it didn’t open in 1974 as a First City? I amused my Chase banker earlier this year by reciting the long list of bank names that my over-30-year-old account at Chase has had: First City, New First City, Texas Commerce, Chase Bank of Texas, JP Morgan Chase, and apparently now just Chase.
Seems all roads lead to Chase. For me it was Bank of the Southwest, Bank With No Name (literally, for about 6 months), M Bank (M for Momentum, I suppose), Bank One…Now Chase.
TCB was purchased by New York’s Chemical Bank which continued to run it as TCB. When Chase later bought Chemical, they changed the name to Chase Bank of Texas in late 1996. I remember having a debit card with both logos during the transition.
Actually, it appears that the 9525 Bissonnet location was originally opened as a TCB.
http://www.bankencyclopedia.com/Texas-Commerce-Bank-Westwood-21642-Houston-Texas.html
The nearby FCB locations were 610 and Bissonnet, which is now a Chase, and 10425 Bissonnet, just outside Beltway 8, which had no tollway back then.
http://www.bankencyclopedia.com/inactive-banks-North-Dakota-Wyoming14.html
@GoogleMaster, bill_b and NativeHoustonian: You just gave me another great reason to appreciate my credit union.
TCB was a great bank. It was run by a fella named Benjamin Love. He was a great man. He ran a very tight ship. Told you what to wear and how to think.
Thank you
It was Benton “Ben” Love. He was indeed an important Houstonian.