Old Stone Bank was a popular

Rhode Island Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...

banking institution that was founded in

Providence Providence often refers to: * Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion * Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in some religions * Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...

in 1819 as a

mutual savings bank A mutual savings bank is a financial institution chartered by a central or regional government, without capital stock, owned by its members who subscribe to a common fund. From this fund, claims, loans, etc., are paid. Profits after deductions ...

that was called Providence Institution for Savings. The savings bank was the fourth largest bank in Rhode Island when it was declared insolvent by the

Office of Thrift Supervision The Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) was a List of federal agencies in the United States, United States federal agency under the United States Department of the Treasury, Department of the Treasury that chartered, supervised, and regulated al ...

on January 29, 1993. Providence-based Citizens Bank acquired all of the savings bank's deposits the following year.

History

In 1969, Old Stone Corporation was formed as the holding company for the savings bank. In the early 1970s the bank adopted as its mascot and "spokesperson" cartoon character

Fred Flintstone Fred Flintstone is the main character of the animated sitcom '' The Flintstones'', which aired during prime-time on ABC during the original series' run from 1960 to 1966. Fred is the husband of Wilma Flintstone and father of Pebbles Flintst ...

, who would say in commercials "Yabba-dabba-doo, love that Old Stone Bank!" The bank's ATMs were called "Ready Freddy". Old Stone Bank collapsed in the 1980s when the federal government convinced it to take over two failed

savings and loan A savings and loan association (S&L), or thrift institution, is a financial institution that specializes in accepting savings deposits and making mortgage and other loans. While the terms "S&L" and "thrift" are mainly used in the United States, ...

institutions, but reneged on its promise that it would not hurt the bank to do so. In 1992, Old Stone filed a lawsuit against the government alleging breach of contract. They were awarded $192 million in 2004, but an appeals court reduced the award to 74.5 million, and the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

declined to hear a further appeal. The savings bank was seized by the

on January 29, 1993. In July 1994, Providence-based Citizens Bank, a subsidiary of

Citizens Financial Group Citizens Financial Group, Inc. is an American bank holding company, headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island. The company owns the bank Citizens Bank, N.A., which operates in the U.S. states of Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Maryland, Massach ...

, acquired all of the deposits and some of the offices of Old Stone from the

Resolution Trust Corporation Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC) was a U.S. government-owned asset management company first run by Lewis William Seidman and charged with liquidating assets, primarily real estate-related assets such as mortgage loans, that had been assets ...

for $133.6 million. As a result of the merger, Citizens closed 11 of the 28 of the former Old Stone branches along with 7 Citizens branches since there was extensive branch overlaps with the two banking organizations.

Interstate expansion

In its first expansion move, Old Stone Corporation acquired the ailing

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

-based Citizens Federal Savings and Loan Association for an undisclosed amount with the assistance of the

Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation The Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation (FSLIC) was an institution that administered deposit insurance for savings and loan institutions in the United States. History Establishment The FSLIC was established by the National Housing Act ...

. This federal bailout had cost the tax payers $78.7 million. The new acquisition was renamed Old Stone Bank of Washington. Five years later, Old Stone sold its Washington savings bank to

Washington Mutual Washington Mutual, Inc. (often abbreviated to WaMu) was an American Bank holding company, savings bank holding company based in Seattle. It was the parent company of Washington Mutual Bank, which was the largest savings and loan association in ...

in June 1990 for $10 million.

Old Stone Bank Building

The landmark Old Stone Bank Building, from which the bank derived its popular nickname and which housed the bank's flagship branch, is located on South Main Street in Providence. The granite edifice with a distinctive gold leaf, spired dome was designed by C.J. and R.J. Hall in 1854 and is a prime example of the style of bank architecture, prevalent from the mid-19th to the mid-20th Century, which communicated stability, strength and permanence. It was sold by the

Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...

for $1.15 million in 1995 to house the

Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology ''Haffenreffer'' is a German surname. It may apply to: Organizations * Haffenreffer Brewery, a former brewer in Jamaica Plain, Massachusettses, established in 1870 * Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology, a teaching and research museum at Brown Un ...

's collection of Native American artifacts. In 1999 Brown decided it was unfeasible to house the collection in the building as the necessary alterations would have altered the historic character of the building. In April 2009 Brown sold the building to Gold Dome Properties, LLC for $2.14 million.

Gallery

File:Providence Institution for Savings engraving.jpg, The building was originally constructed 1854 File:Old Stone Bank facade.jpg, The structure as it appears today.

References

{{Authority control Banks based in Rhode Island Banks established in 1819 Defunct banks of the United States Companies disestablished in the 1980s American companies established in 1819