— The '89er Trail —

Lumberman, Banker, and Business Leader

On the afternoon of April 22, T.M. Richardson, and his son T.M. Jr., from Albany, Texas, staked a claim at the northeast corner of Clarke Street (later Grand, and today Sheridan) and Harvey, where the Devon Tower stands today. This became the site of the Jones and Richardson Lumber Company, which would soon be the largest lumber company in the region.

At the southwest corner of Broadway and Main Street, he purchased a lot and opened the Oklahoma Bank, arguably the first in the new city, in a tent. The next year it was given the name First National Bank, and within a few years Richardson had built a three story building for the bank on the same corner.

He was a founding member of the Board of Trade, its first treasurer, and a member of the railroad and finance committee. His First National Bank would live on through panics, recessions, mergers, and takeovers until it became a



part of Bank of America in the 1980s.

Photo captions:
Top left: The Jones and Richardson Lumber Yard was located between Main and
Grand along Harvey Street.
Research Division of the Oklahoma Historical Society
Middle: Т.М. Richardson was one of Oklahoma City's early business leaders. Research Division of the Oklahoma Historical Society
Top right: First National Bank circa 1894. Research Division of the Oklahoma Historical Society

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The Election of May 1, 1889
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