State Bank of Brooks (Corning, Iowa)

State Bank of Brooks (Corning, Iowa)

In 1900, George W. Blazer moved from the Adams County seat of Corning to the unincorporated community of Brooks and formed the the first local bank, “Bank of Brooks.” The bank was operated within a corner of O.T. Muzzy’s General Store before before a new wood frame building was constructed in 1902. The Brooks location was updated in 1920, with a new cement block exterior and reinforced vault.

Bank robberies were attempted twice in a three year period in the early 1960s, prompting bank owners to relocate to Corning, which offered better police protection. The current facility was purchased in 1966 and opened as the new home for the Bank of Brooks on February 4, 1963. The bank was one of the last three private banks in the state to be operated as a Banking Partnership. Following the collapse of the Exchange Bank in Bloomfield in September 1983, the bank applied for F.D.I.C. Insurance and a State Bank Charter. It was renamed the State Bank of Brooks on June 22, 1984.