The Second National Bank of Helena, Mont. was organized at a meeting held on June 3, 1882, by a group of the city's businessmen, including Erastus D. Edgerton, Decius S. Wade, John Kinna, John B. Sanford, Cornelius L. Vawter, Charles K. Cole, and Christian Kenck. When the new general banking house opened for business in August at 7 N. Main Street, its capital totaled $75,000. The bank moved to 56 N. Main in 1888. E.D. Edgerton was elected as the bank's first president, an office he held until the closing of the Second National Bank in 1893. Throughout these years, several of the bank's organizers served as vice presidents, including Wade, Sanford, and Cole. Cashiers included Alonzo E. Bunker and George B. Child. The Second National Bank was involved through loans and investments in real estate, agriculture, small businesses, and mining. During the difficult economic times of the early 1890s, the Second National Bank struggled to stay solvent. According to President Edgerton, the bank's problems stemmed from the fact that the capitalization of the bank was only $75,000 while "other banks had 8 to 9 times more." Even though business was good, expenses were high, and it was determined not "altogether profitable" to continue the bank's operation. During the panic of 1893, a merger of the Second National Bank with the Helena National Bank was arranged with a stock exchange offered to stockholders. The merger became effective on October 1st, with Edgerton serving as the president of the newly organized Helena National Bank.