Lauritzen Corporation
Encyclopedia
Lauritzen Corporation is a financial and interstate bank holding company headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska, United States, and is the county seat of Douglas County. It is located in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about 20 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River...

. Lauritzen Corporation currently has bank branches in Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....

 and Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...

, and has total assets of approximately $17.76 billion . In addition to banks, Lauritzen Corporation has five holding companies and 15 insurance or financial companies. Lauritzen Corporation has an approximately 28% voting share in First National of Nebraska
First National of Nebraska
First National of Nebraska is a privately held, interstate bank holding company based in Omaha, Nebraska, USA. The largest banking subsidiaries are First National Bank of Omaha, First National Bank Colorado, First National Bank Kansas and First National Bank South Dakota. First National of...

, Inc.. All told, it is one of the 50 largest banks in the United States ranked by total deposits , and is ranked among the top 200 United States banks by The Banker
The Banker
The Banker is an English-language monthly international financial affairs publication owned by The Financial Times Ltd. and edited in London...

financial journal .

John Lauritzen

John Lauritzen was born on March 28, 1917, in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...

. He received his diploma from Blake County Day School in Hopkins, Minnesota
Hopkins, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 17,145 people, 8,224 households, and 3,741 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,205.9 people per square mile . There were 8,390 housing units at an average density of 2,058.2 pe square mile...

, where he was captain of both the hockey and golf teams. After John graduated from high school in 1936, he attended Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....

. He left the university after his sophomore year.

In 1949, after three years of correspondence courses and six weeks of classroom work on campus, he received his diploma from the University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...

's Graduate School of Banking.

Ten years earlier, he married T.L. Davis' daughter, Elizabeth Ann. T.L. Davis had a large part in the history of First National of Nebraska
First National of Nebraska
First National of Nebraska is a privately held, interstate bank holding company based in Omaha, Nebraska, USA. The largest banking subsidiaries are First National Bank of Omaha, First National Bank Colorado, First National Bank Kansas and First National Bank South Dakota. First National of...

.

In 1943, he began working for the Davis family banks, first at the North Side Bank in Florence
Florence, Nebraska
Florence is a neighborhood in Omaha, Nebraska on the city's north end and originally one of the oldest cities in Nebraska. It was incorporated by the Nebraska Territorial Legislature on March 10, 1857. The site of Winter Quarters for Mormon migrants traveling west, it has the oldest cemetery for...

 and later at the Washington County Bank in Blair
Blair, Nebraska
Blair is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 7,990 at the 2000 census. Blair is a part of the Omaha-Council Bluffs Metropolitan Statistical Area.- History :...

.

Bruce Lauritzen

Bruce Lauritzen was born on June 21, 1943. After his freshman year at Westside High School, he transferred to St. Paul's School
St. Paul's School (Concord, New Hampshire)
St. Paul's School is a highly selective college-preparatory, coeducational boarding school in Concord, New Hampshire affiliated with the Episcopal Church. The school is one of only six remaining 100% residential boarding schools in the U.S. The New Hampshire campus currently serves 533 students,...

 in Concord, New Hampshire
Concord, New Hampshire
The city of Concord is the capital of the state of New Hampshire in the United States. It is also the county seat of Merrimack County. As of the 2010 census, its population was 42,695....

. This was the same Episcopal
Episcopal Church (United States)
The Episcopal Church is a mainline Anglican Christian church found mainly in the United States , but also in Honduras, Taiwan, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the British Virgin Islands and parts of Europe...

 college preparatory institute from which his grandfather, T.L. Davis, had graduated 60 years earlier.

In 1965, Bruce received his bachelor of arts degree from Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....

, and then his master's in business administration from the University of Virginia
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...

 in 1967. He met his wife, Kimball Bowles, during his junior year at Princeton, and they were married in November 1965.

Bruce seriously considered a job with the North Carolina National Bank in Charlotte
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...

. He and his father discussed his future career options, and John felt that it was the right time for Bruce to begin working at First National
First National Bank of Omaha
First National Bank Omaha is a subsidiary of First National of Nebraska. It is recognized as the largest privately held bank in the country with $17 billion in managed assets and 5,000 employees...

 and that if he didn’t like it there, he could go somewhere else later.

Bruce began working at First National on August 14, 1967. He became president of Farmers Savings Bank in Shelby, Iowa
Shelby, Iowa
Shelby is a city in Pottawattamie and Shelby counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 696 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Shelby is located at ....

 at the age of 26. In 1971, he personally purchased Sibley State Bank and made himself president, and in the following year, he purchased Landmands National Bank and negotiated for the family the acquisition of Harlan County Bank and became president. At the age of 29, he was the president of four banks.

By this time, he had two daughters, Margaret and Blair. In 1976, his son, Clarkson, was born and Bruce also purchased the Crawford County Bank.

History

John Lauritzen decided to go into business for himself, and in 1947 while he was assistant cashier and months before he became an assistant vice president, he sold his house for $14,000, and the site of his future home for $3,000. He used this $17,000 and another $17,000 in borrowed money to purchase a bank in Emerson, Iowa
Emerson, Iowa
Emerson is a city in Mills County, Iowa, United States. The population was 480 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Emerson is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....

. At the age of 28, he became the youngest bank president in the country.

Five years later, he purchased the First State Bank of Loomis, Nebraska
Loomis, Nebraska
Loomis is a village in Phelps County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 397 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Loomis is located at ....

. At the time, he could only afford to purchase 51 percent of the shares. The current owners of the bank told Lauritzen that he would need to buy 100 percent or nothing at all. He then purchased the bank and then quickly re-sold the remaining 49 percent.

After the death of T.L. Davis' in 1955, Lauritzen acquired control of the Washington County Bank, in 1956, the Farmers and Merchants Bank in Bloomfield (1958) and the Burt County State Bank in Tekamah (1961). In 1958, he formed what could be called the forerunner of today's Lauritzen Corporation to oversee his rapidly expanding holdings. Lauritzen then abruptly resigned from the First National to devote all of his energies to his growing chain of small banks.

Lauritzen had been appointed to the board of directors in 1953 and promoted to senior vice president three years after that. Members of First National's management team refused to accept his resignation. Both sides agreed that Lauritzen would work for First National half time, at half pay, and half time for his own string of banks.

Ownership

Lauritzen Corporation is privately held primarily by the Lauritzen family, with Bruce R. Lauritzen exercising sole investment and voting power which he shares with his mother, Elizabeth D. Lauritzen . Many members of the Lauritzen family are associated with the individual companies within the Lauritzen Corporation.

Bruce R. Lauritzen is Chief Executive Officer of Lauritzen Corporation, as well as Chairman of First National of Nebraska
First National of Nebraska
First National of Nebraska is a privately held, interstate bank holding company based in Omaha, Nebraska, USA. The largest banking subsidiaries are First National Bank of Omaha, First National Bank Colorado, First National Bank Kansas and First National Bank South Dakota. First National of...

, Inc., First National Bank of Omaha, and more than a dozen other banks and bank holding companies operating in Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....

, Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...

, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

, South Dakota
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...

, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...

, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

, and Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

. His combined organizations have more than $20 billion in assets and 7,500 employees in 31 states .

Crawford County Bank

A subsidiary of The Viking Corporation

Website
Branch in Iowa: Denison
Denison, Iowa
Denison is a city in Crawford County, Iowa, United States, along the Boyer River. The population was 7,339 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Crawford County.-Geography:Denison is located at ....


Crawford County Bank started operations in 1927, and has maintained the same name since they opened their doors.

Farmers & Merchants State Bank

Website
Branches in Nebraska: Bloomfield
Bloomfield, Nebraska
Bloomfield is a city in Knox County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 1,126 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Bloomfield is located at ....

, Crofton
Crofton, Nebraska
Crofton is a city in Knox County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 754 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Crofton is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....

, Center
Center, Nebraska
Center is a village in Knox County, Nebraska, USA. The population was 94 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Knox County.-Geography:Center is located at ....

, Hartington
Hartington, Nebraska
Hartington is a city in Cedar County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 1,554 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Cedar County.-Geography:Hartington is located at ....

, and Niobrara
Niobrara, Nebraska
Niobrara is a village in Knox County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 370 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Niobrara is located at ....

Branch in South Dakota: Yankton
Yankton, South Dakota
Yankton is a city in, and the county seat of, Yankton County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 14,454 at the 2010 census. Yankton was the original capital of Dakota Territory. It is named for the Yankton tribe of Nakota Native Americans...


Farmers and Merchants State Bank was chartered in 1890. As they have grown over the years, they have taken pride in being a family owned and orientated bank..

First State Bank

A subsidiary of the Loomis Company, Inc.

Website
Branches in Nebraska: Loomis
Loomis, Nebraska
Loomis is a village in Phelps County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 397 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Loomis is located at ....

 and Alma
Alma, Nebraska
Alma is a city in Harlan County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 1,214 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Harlan County. The town is named after a daughter of one of the early settlers...


First State Bank opened their doors for business in 1886. Their first office was located in a hardware store office. In 1938, First State Bank's assets were the largest of any town in Nebraska with a population of 1,000 or less. The Lauritzen family purchased First State Bank in 1952. First State Bank added a branch in Alma by purchasing the Harlan County Bank in 2006.

Houghton State Bank

Website
Branches in Iowa: Red Oak
Red Oak, Iowa
-2010 census:The 2010 census recorded a population of 5,742 in the city, with a population density of . There were 2,887 housing units, of which 2,406 were occupied....

, Cumerland
Cumberland, Iowa
Cumberland is a city in Cass County, Iowa, United States. The population was 281 at the 2000 census. Cumberland's sister community is Massena, Iowa.-Geography:Cumberland is located at ....

, Elliott
Elliott, Iowa
Elliott is a city in Montgomery County, Iowa, United States, along the East Nishnabotna River. The population was 402 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Elliott is located at ....

 and Emerson
Emerson, Iowa
Emerson is a city in Mills County, Iowa, United States. The population was 480 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Emerson is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....


Landmands Bank

A subsidiary of Viking Corporation

Website
Branches in Iowa: Audubon
Audubon, Iowa
-2010 census:The 2010 census recorded a population of 2,176 in the city, with a population density of . There were 1,106 housing units, of which 961 were occupied....

 and Kimballton
Kimballton, Iowa
Kimballton is a city in Audubon County, Iowa, United States. The population was 342 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Kimballton is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....


Landmands Bank has a mission "to be the premier financial institution in its trade area, committed to long-term growth and profitability, while taking the lead in the area's economic vitality."

Shelby County State Bank

Website
Branches in Iowa: Harlan
Harlan, Iowa
Harlan is a city in Shelby County, Iowa, United States, along the West Nishnabotna River. The population was 5,282 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Shelby County.-History:...

, Elk Horn
Elk Horn, Iowa
Elk Horn is a city in Shelby County, Iowa, United States. The population was 649 at the 2000 census. Elk Horn is known as a center of Danish ethnicity and is home to The Danish Immigrant Museum...

, Panama
Panama, Iowa
Panama is a city in Shelby County, Iowa, United States. The population was 212 at the 2000 census.- History :Began as a village known as “Crandall’s Station” during the construction of the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway. The City was officially platted by the Milwaukee Land Co...

, Portsmouth
Portsmouth, Iowa
Portsmouth is a city in Shelby County, Iowa, United States. The population was 225 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Portsmouth is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....

, Irwin
Irwin, Iowa
Irwin is a city in Shelby County, Iowa, United States, along the West Nishnabotna River. The population was 372 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Irwin is located at ....

 and Shelby
Shelby, Iowa
Shelby is a city in Pottawattamie and Shelby counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 696 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Shelby is located at ....


Shelby County State Bank was first organized as a state bank in 1880 under the name of the Shelby County Bank. BL Harding was the first bank President and the bank began with $50,000 in assets. The Shelby County Bank was officially incorporated in 1894.

In 1906 the Shelby County Bank and First National Bank were consolidated under the name of the Shelby County State Bank. In May 1911, H.P. Dowling presided as bank President and by 1913 the deposits of the bank had reached a total of $780,000.

In 1933 The Farmers and Merchants Savings Bank of Harlan merged with The Shelby County State Bank. For the convenience of its customers, a branch bank was established in Elk Horn, Iowa that same year.

By the time H. Rand Petersen became SCSB President in 1957, SCSB had $5 million in assets. In 1972, Rand helped SCSB construct the first drive-in bank in Harlan located on the corner of 5th and Court St. In 1975, the SCSB main office changed locations from 1012 6th St. and built a new bank which joined the established Drive-in Bank at 508 Court St.

Within nine years SCSB merged with four other banks including Panama and Portsmouth in 1986, Irwin in 1992 and Shelby in 1995. In 1993 the bank converted the former ‘Lil Duffer restaurant into what’s now the Harlan West Branch on Highway 59.

Soon after the bank’s merger with the State Bank of Portsmouth, Jerry Lapke became President of SCSB. Current SCSB President Roger Claypool has assumed those same duties since 1996. Today, SCSB has total assets of over $210 million.

Sibley State Bank

A subsidiary of KBJ Enterprises, Inc.

Website
Branch in Iowa: Sibley
Sibley, Iowa
Sibley is a city in Osceola County, Iowa, United States. The population was 2,796 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Osceola County. It is named after Henry Hastings Sibley, a prominent General during the Dakota War of 1862, who eventually became the first territorial governor of...


Washington County Bank

Website
Branches in Nebraska: Blair
Blair, Nebraska
Blair is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 7,990 at the 2000 census. Blair is a part of the Omaha-Council Bluffs Metropolitan Statistical Area.- History :...

 and Tekamah
Tekamah, Nebraska
Tekamah is a city in Burt County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 1,736 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Burt County.-History:...


Washington County Bank first opened for business on April 5, 1904, in the town of Washington, Nebraska as Washington State Bank. The bank merged with the Kennard State Bank of Kennard in May 1930. On July 1, 1933, Kennard State Bank moved to Blair and opened as Washington County Bank. John R. Lauritzen acquired control of Washington County Bank in 1955, three years before forming the Lauritzen Corporation. In 2004, the bank completed a merger with their sister bank, Burt County State Bank, in Tekamah. In 2007, Washington County Bank opened their third branch in Omaha.

York State Bank

Website
Branches in Nebraska: York
York, Nebraska
York is a city in York County, Nebraska, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 7,766. It is the county seat of York County. It is the home of York College and the Nebraska Correctional Center for Women.-Geography:...

, Geneva
Geneva, Nebraska
Geneva is a city in Fillmore County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 2,217 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Fillmore County.-Geography:Geneva is located at ....

, and Gresham
Gresham, Nebraska
Gresham is a village in York County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 270 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Gresham is located at ....


Dean Sack obtained a charter for a new bank in 1943, and opened their doors on July 13. Just after the opening of York State Bank, Sack charted the Henderson State Bank in October 1944, and another bank in Benedict, Nebraska the same year. York State Bank was sold to the Lauritzen Corporation in 1995, and continues to support the education, industrial and agricultural aspects of York County today.

Non-banking subsidiaries


See also

  • First National of Nebraska
    First National of Nebraska
    First National of Nebraska is a privately held, interstate bank holding company based in Omaha, Nebraska, USA. The largest banking subsidiaries are First National Bank of Omaha, First National Bank Colorado, First National Bank Kansas and First National Bank South Dakota. First National of...

    , Inc. -- Bruce Lauritzen's secondary ownership
  • Lauritzen Gardens, Omaha's Botanical Center, made possible through the philanthropy of the Lauritzen family.
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