Bank of Martha's Vineyard History Martha's Vineyard Bank of Edgartown, the first bank on the island, was founded in 1855 and ten years later became a national bank with a name change to reflect that to Martha's Vineyard National Bank. The original Bank office was built at "Four Corners" in Edgartown, and, at that time was the gathering point in town for everyone to exchange news of the day. In 1883 a fire destroyed the Vineyard Haven office of the Bank, where our main office now stands. The fire started at the Crocker Harness Co. and destroyed all the buildings on both sides of Main Street, south to the corner of Main and State Road. By the time the fire was brought under control, largely by the help of a shift in the wind, thirty-two dwellings had been destroyed, twenty-six stores, twelve barns, two stables and Proprietor's Meeting House. William Barry Owen, a director of the Bank, bought the parcel of land that had once held the harness factory to build the bank building as it stands today. The building was designed after a structure in England and built by James Norton, a native Vineyard stone mason. Compass Bank acquired Martha's Vineyard National Bank in 1994, and in 2004 was acquired by Sovereign Bankcorp, Inc. The name was changed to Bank of Martha's Vineyard to reflect the true origins of the Bank. There are five branches serving the island communities and their banking needs. We, at Bank of Martha's Vineyard, pride ourselves on community involvement, not only through financial support to nonprofit organizations, but also through volunteering in community activities.