Wachovia Securities - History

Wachovia Corporation

Wachovia was formed by the 2001 merger of First Union Corporation and the former Wachovia Corporation. In connection with the merger, First Union changed its name to Wachovia Corporation.

First Union
First Union's modest beginnings were in the Buford Hotel on Charlotte's Tryon Street not long after the turn of the 20th century. H. M. Victor raised funds to start Union National by selling 1,000 shares of stock at $100 each, then set up his office at a roll-up desk in the hotel's main lobby.

Victor soon earned a reputation as a conservative banker who always confirmed his customers' creditworthiness before making a loan. For years, Victor even refused to make loans on the newly invented automobile. When he finally relented with a loan on a Model-T, he held the owner's keys and title until the loan was repaid.

As Union National grew, it maintained a reputation for high credit quality, strong financial performance and excellent customer service. It was this viability that kept the bank open during the 1930s, when the Depression closed many others.

In 1958, Union National merged with First National Bank and Trust Company of Asheville, forming First Union National Bank of North Carolina. By 1964 First Union further diversified by acquiring Raleigh-based Cameron-Brown Company, a national mortgage banking and insurance firm.

Over the decades, First Union grew into a diversified financial service company encompassing retail brokerage services, wealth management, corporate and investment banking, as well as traditional banking.

Wachovia

When William A. Lemly decided in 1879 to relocate his bank from the quiet Moravian village of Salem to the bustling county seat of Winston, he needed more than a crew of movers. Although the relocation involved moving only a few blocks up the street, changing towns required a new charter and a new name.

Both became effective on June 16, 1879, with the opening of the doors of the new Wachovia National Bank. The bank started business with capital of $100,000, which its directors felt was "very adequate."

Some years later, on June 15, 1893, North Carolina's first trust company - Wachovia Loan and Trust Company - opened its doors for business in the rapidly growing town of Winston. Its two-man staff was headed by a prominent textile and railroad entrepreneur, Francis H. Fries (pronounced "freeze").

In 1911, the two Wachovia's merged to form Wachovia Bank and Trust Company. The consolidated bank began operations with deposits of $4 million, capital stock of $1.25 million and total resources of $7 million. It was the largest bank in the South and the largest trust operation between Baltimore and New Orleans.

Origin of the Name
In 1753, Moravian settlers bought about 100,000 acres in the North Carolina Piedmont. They called the land "Wachau" in appreciation of their benefactor, Count Nicholas Ludwig von Zinzendorf.

"Wachovia" (pronounced wa-KO-vee-yah) comes from "Wachau," the name given by Moravian settlers in 1753 to the tract of about 100,000 acres that they purchased in the North Carolina Piedmont.

Wachau, from the German words "die Wach au" - "Wach" was the name of a stream and "au" means "meadowland" - was a part of Austria, the ancestral home of the Moravians' benefactor, Count Zinzendorf, and, likewise, an area of abundant streams and pastures along a river (the Danube).

The settlers named the Carolina tract bought just east of the Yadkin River Wachau as an expression of appreciation to Zinzendorf. Later, the English form Wachovia was used.

Over the years, the name Wachovia ceased to be used as a designation for the area but remained a popular name for businesses that originated in the Moravian village of Salem and the adjoining town of Winston, which merged in 1913 to form Winston-Salem.




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Wachovia Securities Inc.

Wachovia Securities Inc. ws founded in 1986


Wachovia Securities Inc. provides institutional brokerage, lending, trust, and investment banking services. The company's products and services include bonds, mutual funds, annuities, financial services, life insurance, equity research, asset management, estate planning, and retirement plans. It serves energy, financial services, technology, consumer, healthcare, and real estate industries.

The company was formerly known as First Union Securities Inc. It is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. Wachovia Securities operates as a subsidiary of Wachovia Corporation.

401 South Tryon Street

Charlotte, NC 28288-1167

United States

Founded in 1986