Washington Trust has a banknote signed by John Quincy Adams, our nation's sixth President, on display at our headquarters in Westerly, RI.
When the Bank was founded in 1800 national currency didn't exist, so the first course of business was to produce a medium of exchange. Washington Trust printed its own banknotes, backed by gold and silver, bearing what is believed to be the first likeness of George Washington on currency. A series of banknotes and a set of the original copper plates, from which the banknotes were made, are on display in the Bank's headquarters.
The original Howdy Doody marionette from The Howdy Doody Show, a popular children's television show in the 1950s, lived in a Washington Trust safe deposit vault for more than a year. In 2001 he was sent to the Detroit Institute for Arts to join Punch and Judy, Kermit the Frog and other puppets in the museum's collection.
Albert Einstein often vacationed in Watch Hill, Rhode Island where he enjoying sailing his 17-foot wooden boat. One summer he visited Washington Trust to cash a check.
In 1861, Washington Trust Bank President Nathan Dixon speaks at a Civil War rally calling to all men who love their country to enlist in the Union.
The Bank's first building, built in 1836 of Westerly granite, was referred to as the Little Greek Temple. The building resembled the Parthenon of Athens and was located, in part, where today's Main Office stands.
In 2001, Washington Trust introduced the "PB Xpress", a peanut butter drive to benefit the RI Community Food Ban. To date, the Bank has collected 87 tons of peanut butter!
Points of Light Award
In 2005, Washington Trust received the national Award for Excellence in Workplace Volunteer Programs from The Points of Light Foundation in recognition of the Bank's outstanding commitment to engage employees in community service. Other recipients that year included Aetna, Cisco, Federated Department Stores (Macy's & Bloomingdale's), and The Home Depot.
Barry's, Barry's, Barry's! Washington Trust's Governor Francis branch in Warwick is located at the site of the former Barry's Nightclub - one of Rhode Island's hottest night spots for 25 years, spanning the 80s and 90s.
Washington Trust is 86 years older than the Statue of Liberty.
Washington Trust was doing business in Rhode Island 60 years before Abraham Lincoln was elected President.
In 1889 when the Eiffel Tower built for the Paris exposition, Washington Trust was already 89 years old.
When the RI State House was constructed in 1904, Washington Trust celebrated 104 years in business.