The records of the City National Bank of Green Bay provide detailed information on the kind and volume of daily activities of a small city bank. They also document the financial activities of individual depositories and local firms using the bank's services and of other banks with which the City Bank dealt. The records are organized in three groups: cash books, general ledgers, and deposit ledgers.
The Cash Books, 1863-1876, are a daily record of the bank's transactions kept in double column format to distinguish debits and credits. Each entry shows the name of the individual or business account, the ledger number to which the entry was posted, and the amount of the transaction. The amounts are entered into columns headed “deposit,” “general accounts,” and “exchange and interest.” The cash books also show daily balances.
The General Ledgers, 1863-1880, and the Deposit Ledgers, 1868-1874, also are in double columns. Before 1868, all accounts were posted in the General Ledgers; thereafter the Deposit Ledger recorded accounts with individuals and with non-banking firms and the General Ledgers recorded accounts with other banks and accounts for personal property owned by the bank, the bank's profits and losses, dividends, total daily deposits and withdrawals, and government taxes on bank operations. Entries in both the General and Deposit Ledgers are arranged by account and listed chronologically thereunder. Each entry shows the date of the transaction, the type of transaction (usually cash), the amount, the Cash Book page number from which the entry was posted, and usually a monthly balance for the account. Volumes 10, 13, 17, and 19 have separate indexes; the remaining ledgers have indexes to the names of the accounts at the front of the volumes.
