First American National Bank
Encyclopedia
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
that served the states of Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
and Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. It was headquartered in the First American Center in downtown Nashville.
The bank began, in Nashville, as the American National Bank and later merged to become First American National Bank in the 1930s. In 1971, construction of the First American Center (now the Regions Center) in downtown Nashville resulted in the discovery of the skeleton of a sabertooth cat (Smilodon
Smilodon
Smilodon , often called a saber-toothed cat or saber-toothed tiger, is an extinct genus of machairodonts. This saber-toothed cat was endemic to North America and South America, living from near the beginning through the very end of the Pleistocene epoch .-Etymology:The nickname "saber-tooth" refers...
floridanus) within a cave beneath the bedrock. First American National Bank facilitated archaeological excavations at the site, funded radiocarbon analysis of the bone, and altered their original building design to protect the remnants of the cave, which still exist beneath the lower level of the building's parking garage. The cave is known as both "The First American Site" and by its official state archaeological site number, 40DV40. In 1997, the Smilodon skeleton from the First American Site was the source for the logo of the Nashville Predators
Nashville Predators
The Nashville Predators are a professional ice hockey team based in Nashville, Tennessee. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
hockey team and the inspiration for their mascot, Gnash.
Its name and logo disappeared in December 2000 when it was acquired by AmSouth Bancorporation
AmSouth Bancorporation
AmSouth Bancorporation was a banking company headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, and operated for its final year in existence as a bank holding company of Regions Financial Corporation after a merger between the two banks. AmSouth was previously known as First National Bank of Birmingham, which...
, an institution based in Birmingham
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
that was slightly smaller in size. First American had operated as a fully owned subsidiary of AmSouth for most of the year 2000. First American was sold after a series of unprofitable mergers, including one with Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...
-based Deposit Guaranty Bank that proved to be a hurdle the corporation could not clear financially. Deposit Guaranty was fully integrated into First American, but kept its name. This allowed FANB to gain significant market share in Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
, and Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, though it did not operate these branches under the corporate brand.
First American's demise ended Nashville's storied history as a strong financial center. It, along with Third National Bank (now a part of SunTrust) and Commerce Union Bank (now a part of Bank of America
Bank of America
Bank of America Corporation, an American multinational banking and financial services corporation, is the second largest bank holding company in the United States by assets, and the fourth largest bank in the U.S. by market capitalization. The bank is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina...
), was once involved in a tight three-way battle for market share that ultimately helped all three banks expand well beyond their respective bounds. When the resources of the three could no longer stand the rapid expansion and numerous acquisitions, they all succumbed and merged with other banks. FANB, the largest of these three banks, was the only one to fold itself into a smaller institution. As of 2007, Nashville is still home to several local banks, but most do not exist outside of Davidson County
Davidson County, Tennessee
Davidson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2010, the population was 626,681. Its county seat is Nashville.In 1963, the City of Nashville and the Davidson County government merged, so the county government is now known as the "Metropolitan Government of Nashville and...
.
Until 2005, AmSouth Bank continued First American's former tradition of having the highest market share in Nashville, however it was surpassed by SunTrust after its acquisition of Memphis-based National Commerce Financial. In 2006, however, AmSouth reclaimed the distinction of largest market share in metropolitan Nashville. In 2006-2007, AmSouth merged with Regions Financial Corporation which is headquartered in Birmingham. The newly combined bank retained Nashville's largest market share http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060525/BUSINESS01/60525002 in addition to AmSouth's CEO, C. Dowd Ritter continuing as CEO of the company.
Sponsorships
First American was very visible in the Nashville area and carried a large load of sponsorships, most notably the now-closed First American Music CenterStarwood Amphitheatre
Starwood Amphitheatre was the primary outdoor music venue in the Nashville, Tennessee area from 1985 to 2006. It was owned by Live Nation and had a capacity of 17,137...
, to which it held naming rights for just one season before selling to AmSouth. First American also prided itself as the "official bank" of several Nashville-based sports franchises, including the Tennessee Titans
Tennessee Titans
The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. They are members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Previously known as the Houston Oilers, the team began play in 1960 as a charter...
, Nashville Predators
Nashville Predators
The Nashville Predators are a professional ice hockey team based in Nashville, Tennessee. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
, Nashville Kats
Nashville Kats
The Nashville Kats were an Arena Football League team, located in Nashville, Tennessee. They were last coached by Pat Sperduto, who coached the team's original incarnation to two ArenaBowl appearances prior to the original franchise's move to Atlanta in 2002...
, and Nashville Sounds
Nashville Sounds
The Nashville Sounds are a minor league baseball team of the Pacific Coast League , and the Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Nashville, Tennessee, and are named for the city's association with the music industry...
. Following the purchase, AmSouth/Regions opted to let each of these sponsorships expire without renewal.
Other First American Banks
There are several regional banks around the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
that now carry the "First American" name. One in particular, in Mississippi, has adopted the full name "First American National Bank". None of these regional institutions are affiliated with the former First American National Bank or AmSouth Bancorporation.