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Wisconsin Community Banker
July/August 2014
Wisconsin Community Bank
ANNIVERSAR IES
Wisconsin Com unity Banker
July/August 2014
All in the Family: Waukesha State Bank Celebrates 70th Year
Mary Lou Santovec
Now led by the third generation, Waukesha State
Bank celebrates its 70
th
anniversary this year.
Carl Taylor, grandfather to current bank president,
Ty Taylor, established the bank in June 1944 at 323 W.
Main St. It became only the second bank to open in the
community.
In 1956 the bank moved to its current location, 151
East St. Paul Ave., on the banks of the Fox River, add-
ing and remodeling space as needed. The bank plans a
significant remodel of its headquarters in the near term.
When Carl Taylor stepped down in 1969, his son,
Don Taylor, became the bank’s president until 1994.
Grandson Ty Taylor, who earned a degree from Illinois’
Wheaton College, took the helm in 2004 after stints at
First Chicago Bank and M&I Marshall & Ilsley Bank.
Just because he was family, Taylor was not given the
royal treatment when he joined the bank. When Taylor
returned home to work, he started as a management
trainee.
Today the bank is one of the largest, locally owned
and independent community banks in Wisconsin. It has
14 full-service offices in Brookfield, Delafield, Mukwo-
nago, Muskego, New Berlin, Oconomowoc, Pewaukee,
Sussex, and of course, Waukesha.
Profitable since its first year of operation, the bank
currently boasts assets of $842 million and deposits of
$710 million. Its mortgage portfolio includes $303 mil-
lion in commercial loans, $69 million in consumer loans,
and $56 million in mortgage loans.
Its brand, “The Bank of Friendly Service” was coined
on the day it opened, and Waukesha State Bank’s 311
employees are known to go the extra mile for the com-
munity. The bank’s first priority is to provide service to
the community, followed by providing for its employees
and then rewarding stockholders, who have consistently
received dividends for 69 years.
With today’s emphasis on making money at all costs,
Waukesha State Bank decided to convert to an S Corpo-
ration in 2005 to ensure it could stay true to its priorities.
During the Great Recession, Taylor said, “We stuck to
our knitting and were proactive in addressing problems.”
Going forward, the bank plans to stay the course. “We
are committed to remaining an independent community
bank, and therefore offer great stability and a strong cor-
porate culture focused on serving the community and
taking care of our employees.”
Please join CBW in congratulating the following
member banks that are marking significant anniversaries
in July, August, and September!
155 Years
First Bank Financial Centre, Oconomowoc, on Sept. 1
115 Years
The Necedah Bank, on July 15
Port Washington State Bank, on Sept. 11
110 Years
Citizens State Bank, Hudson, on July 15
15 Years
Sunset Bank & Savings, Waukesha, on Aug. 16
Unity Bank CEO Rachel Goodell, center, accepts centennial
plaques from Rose Oswald Poels, WBA, and Daryll Lund, CBW.
Unity Bank, Augusta, is celebrating its centennial this year. The
bank opened on Dec. 1, 1914.
