First County Bank

First County Bank operates 16 full-service branches in Fairfield County, Connecticut: eight in Stamford; three in Norwalk; and one each in Darien, Greenwich, New Canaan, Westport, and Fairfield.

First County Bank also operates one limited-access branch at the Academy of Information Technology and Engineering high school. It provides students with an opportunity to learn and perform banking functions. The branch is staffed by high school students who are enrolled in financial literacy education classes and learn banking skills through the internship program. The branch is open only during school hours; banking services are limited to current students and faculty members.

On September 20, 1851, First County Bank was founded as the Stamford Savings Bank and elected its first president, Theodore Davenport. Stamford Savings Bank made loans for the construction and purchase of homes as well as safeguarded and invested the money of Stamford's residents.[3][4]

In 1875, Judge John Clason was elected a corporator of Stamford Savings Bank and was immediately made a director. He donated $10,000 to the Ferguson Library and $43,000 in securities to build a hospital in Stamford.

In 1883, the Bank's board voted to build the first Stamford Savings Bank. The building was called "The Old Red Bank" and was constructed by architect Warren R. Briggs.

In 1909, Schuyler Merritt, who became a U.S. Congressman, was elected a corporator of Stamford Savings Bank. The Merritt Parkway, a historic limited-access parkway in Fairfield County, Connecticut, was named after him.

In 1961, Stamford Savings Bank opened its first branch office in Darien. The bank opened a second branch in 1968 and continued to open branches throughout the early 1980s.[5]

In 1989, the bank changed its name from the Stamford Savings Bank to First County Bank, to better serve other growing towns in Fairfield County.[6]

In 2001, First County Bank commemorated its 150th Anniversary by establishing the First County Bank Foundation, Inc.

In 2011, Richard E. Taber retired as First County Bank Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. First County Bank Foundation, Inc. established the Richard E. Taber Citizenship Award which awards three $5,000 scholarships to college-bound local high school graduating seniors. Katherine A. Harris was appointed as First County Bank's first female President and Chief Operating Officer. Under her leadership, the bank grew from six to 15 branches. Reyno A. Giallongo, Jr. became First County Bank's Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, and President of the First County Bank Foundation.[7][8][9][10]

In 2014, Harris retired and Robert J. Granata was appointed as President and Chief Operating Officer of the bank.[11][12][13]

In 2016, Giallongo was appointed by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York as a member of the Community Depository Institutions Advisory Council. First County Bank becomes the first independent community bank to receive the Women's Choice Award for Financial Advisors and Firms.[14][15][16]