- Period in existence: 1817 to 1873
- Location: Main Street, opposite the Old State house
The Phoenix Bank was incorporated in 1814 and reorganized as the Phoenix National Bank in 1865. As the first bank in Hartford not controlled by members of the Congregational church, it was originally thought of as the “Episcopal Bank.” Its initial home was in the Main Street house of Michael Olcott, an original director of the bank, on land that had been in the Olcott family since 1639. As described in the Hartford Courant:
After the bank was started it took possession, as stated above, of the Olcott mansion, but that was soon after destroyed by fire, occasioned by the burning of the corner building–on Asylum street–which, it was supposed, was incendiary work [. . .] In 1815 three of the directors–Messrs. Olcott, Tudor and Russ—were appointed a committee to see to the erection of the new building, and Amos Ransom was selected as “a steady overseer and inspector of the laborers.” The main part of the building now standing is the one which came out of the ashes, and has to this day had the fabled Phoenix–bird with spreading wings exposed from its top.
“The Phoenix Bank. Some Interesting Reminiscences” (Hartford Courant, May 16, 1873)
Completed by 1817, the bank’s new home was the first marble building in Hartford. According to a history of the bank:
The office floor was above a basement and was reached by flights of iron-railed steps at each end of a spacious platform, itself, by its location and accessibility, to be one of the features of Hartford. A figure of the phoenix bird, carved in wood, surmounted the [façade]. It was on this platform that Commodore McDonough, the hero of the recent war [of 1812], stood in February, 1817, when he received the beautiful sword given by Hartford citizens and now preserved by the Connecticut Historical Society. Also it was from this platform that some of the dignitaries witnessed the parade on the occasion of Lafayette’s visit, September 3, 1824, the general himself standing under an arch which spanned the street at this point.
Charles W. Burpee, First Century of the Phoenix National Bank of Hartford (1914), p. 94-95
Additions were soon made to the building:
June 6, 1827, Directors Tudor, Woodbridge and Averill were appointed a committee to add wings on each side of the main building—not at all inappropriate for a phoenix. The wings rented for from $200 to $300 a year. The wooden phoenix was replaced at this time by one of exquisite model, carved out of stone and still in place today. Then above the curtain wall of each ell was placed a life-size marble lion. Antiquarians and lovers of art deeply regret that the name of the sculptor of these lions is unknown. They were destined to win a warm place in the hearts of Hartford citizens and of the children in particular, to be a landmark for many years and finally to become literally a part of the city’s official history.
Charles W. Burpee, First Century of the Phoenix National Bank of Hartford (1914) , p. 95
The lions survive today, now located on the south side of Hartford’s Municipal Building, guarding its Arch Street entrance. The Phoenix Bank replaced its 1817 building with a new one in 1873-1874 [Phoenix Bank (II)]. Two other versions would follow until the last was demolished in 1964 to make way for the Hartford National Bank Building at 777 Main Street.
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