Biography of Harry Bank

HARRY BANK. As a man of affairs or as a patriotic
citizen no one is better or more favorably known in Mc-
Dowell County than Harry Bank, a department store owner
who went into business there on an exceedingly modest scale
and has kept that business growing and prospering in
proportion to the general development of this locality.

Mr. Bank was born in Russia, April 15, 1872, of Jewish
parents, Kamper and Sarah Bank. He acquired his educa-
tion in old country schools, but did not know a word of
English when he came to the United States at the age of
seventeen. For three years he lived in Baltimore, and in
that city he laid the foundation for his Americanism. While
putting in his days working and learning the methods of an
American store, he spent hours at night studying to equip
himself with a knowledge of English. Then, about 1891,
Mr. Bank came to Kimball and made an unpretentious start
as a general merchant. Being cautious, very reliable in all
his dealings, he has built up a department store that handles
all the merchandise required in this community. Because
of his high standing as a man of affairs and his thorough
business integrity Mr. Bank has been widely sought as an
advisor and co-operator in movements affecting the welfare
of his section. He was appointed a member of the Gov-
ernor's staff. Among other extensive interests in this
region he is a director of the First National Bank of
Kimball and a large stockholder in the Safly Pocahontas
Coal Company.

In 1895, at Baltimore, Mr. Bank married Miss Ida Michel-
son. They have four children, Sadie, Bernard, Marie and
Etta. Sadie is the wife of Jack Leibman, of Welch.

Mr. Bank is a Scottish Rite Mason and Shriner and a
member of the Elks. Everyone in this part of McDowell
County respects the ability and relies implicitly upon Mr.
Bank's high character and good judgment. He is a man
who has come up through struggles, and few men with the
advantages of birth and education in America have gone
further along the highway to real substantial success than
this Kimball merchant.

The History of West Virginia, Old and New
Published 1923, The American Historical Society, Inc., 
Chicago and New York, Volume III, pg. 21

Submitted by Valerie F. Crook <vfcrook@trellis.net>

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