Did the Southern Bank of Ireland intended to open an Edinburgh office?

[callahiljo]

This proof bill with a lovely vignette engraved by W H Lizars suggests that they intended to open an office in Edinburgh. There is no other mention I know of for such a plan which does seem rather unlikely. This is also from a group of mostly Scottish proofs engraved by Lizars.

[Mac]

Interesting! I have not come across any references to the Southern Bank of Ireland intending to open an Edinburgh office, but its founders were ambitious people.
That very attractive vignette bears more than a passing resemblance to the statue of Hibernia on the later 1838 Bank of Ireland notes.

[DOC]

The design of that bill of exchange is very attractive and it is interesting to see reference to an office in Edinburgh. I checked some contemporary newspapers to see if any further information could be found.

Some entertaining articles from 1837 were found including the one referenced in PMI, which was published in the Cork Southern Reporter on 28th September 1837. This described the bank as a “swindling bubble with no capital, operating on fraudulent bills of exchange”.

Interestingly, William Bennet, manager of the Cork Branch, issued a rebuttal to the original article on 9th October 1837. This was run in several newspapers including the Caledonian Mercury. One paragraph would appear to support the existence of offices in London and Edinburgh? It reads as follows:

In the first place, you erred, in stating, that a deputation was sent by the shareholders to raise money in England and Scotland. It was expressly to investigate the accounts of the Bank in London, and, if necessary, proceed to Edinburgh for the same purpose.

[DOC]

The Southern Bank of Ireland published its prospectus in early 1837. It provides the following information with respect to its agents in London, Edinburgh and Dublin.

Agents
• London: William Mitchell, Esq.
• Edinburgh: J.J. Smith, Esq., S.S.C.
• Dublin: Robert Gray, Esq.

This suggests that the Edinburgh Office mentioned on the bill is that of the bank’s agent, J.J. Smith.

[DOC]

Here is an interesting article from the Freeman’s Journal, dated 1st February 1837. It is unusual in providing great detail about the design of the new Southern Bank notes. The author extols the design of the specimen notes that he has seen. The following interesting points emerge.

• Notes were printed of different denominations according to a common design.
• The design described aligns with that of the known £1 notes.
• Specific mention is made of a £5 note with an added feature of red printing in each corner (most likely the panels).

An example of an issued £1 note is attached for reference.

[Mac]

Nice to see a mention of a £5 denomination there.

[DOC]

This impressive £10 proof of The Southern Bank of Ireland from about 1837 appeared at auction during 2022. It is only the second known example and is interesting in having the serial and denomination panels in blue. The £5 note of this Series is reputed to have had red serial and denomination panels but no surviving examples have been seen to date.

[Mac]

The design of the £10 note closely follows that of the £1 notes.
Blue works well on it.

The building at the bottom centre of the £10 is interesting in its resemblance of Bank of Ireland in college Green, Dublin - is it a building in Cork, I wonder.

[DOC]

The building at the bottom centre of the £10 is interesting in its resemblance of Bank of Ireland in college Green, Dublin - is it a building in Cork, I wonder.

Mac,

Happy New Year !

You raise an interesting question in relation to the building at the bottom centre of the note. We know that the other vignettes relate to Cork such as Blackrock Castle and Cork Harbour. As the head office of the bank was located in Cork, I searched for likely Cork based candidates. It seems that the building looks very much like the original Cork Courthouse in Washington Street. This was completed in 1836 and would have been new when the note was designed. The building was destroyed by fire in 1891 and rebuilt in a modified style in 1895.

[Mac]

Interesting indeed. The presence of the impressive building adds a certain solidity to the note. The bank was aiming high in its note design.