While so occupied, M. J. invited his visitor into the new vault to examin its impregnable construction. About this time, Matt Woolsey, described as an eccentric practical joker, entered the bank, slammed the vault door shut, turned the combination, and left the building, chuckling over their predicament.

No provision had been made for inside operation of the lock. The imprisoned pair gloomily assessed their situation. Would Mr. Meyer return? If so, upon seeing the vault door secure, would he conclude that his partner had locked up, and leave for the night? Garter scratched a match and determined that the cash and most of the account books were in the vault.

Fortunately Meyer did return and noticed one ledger had been left out. Acres recalled: "The flood of light when he opened the door was 'glorious'. We had about decided that suffocation was to be our lot. Call it what you will, resignation to fate, anguish, terror--being locked in the vault certainly produced a strange effect on our sense of time. We thought several hours had elapsed since Woolsey locked the door--actually Meyer had only been gone for 20 minutes."

On Oct. 8, 1888, Fred J. Figge was employed by the bank as clerk. Editor Garter described his new employee as: "A young man possessed of a good business education, good habits, honest and industrious, an expert in the use of a typewriter, and has the confidence of our’ people..." Despite this banner billing, Mr. Figge often told the story that his first day was less than auspicious: his accounts were out of balance by $30 at closing time. Fortunately the error was soon found.

One year later, Oct. 8, 1889, Frank Figge Sr., father of Fred, purchased a one third interest in the bank. The firm's ownership was changed to Meyer, Garter & Figge. The deposits this year were listed as $62,000. Transactions exceeded one million dollars.

The Ossian Bank was incorporated in 1906 under a new name, "The Ossian State Bank", and capitalized at $25,000. Its location was moved to the south side of Main street--its present quarters. The officers of the new corporation were: L.

A. Meyer, president; M. J. Carter, vice president; Fred J. Figge, cashier; and Joseph W. Meyer, assistant cashier. Joseph had been employed by the old firm for several years.

As the older officers retired, the younger members succeeded them as officials. L. A. Meyer retired from banking in 1927; Fred Figge became president in 1912.

Figge went on to found a banking dynasty. The third generation of his family are now engaged in this business. He established additional banks at West Bend and Calmar and served as president of all three institutions. At the outset of the Roosevelt "Bank Holiday" in 1933, only 53 Iowa banks were allowed to remain open. This figure included all three of the Figge banks.

Mr. Figge was elected president of the Iowa Bankers Association in 1932. He, along with Frank Warner, succeeded in persuading the Iowa Legislature to adopt SF-111, a bank stabilization bill that became a model for other states to follow in solving the financial crises during the great depression. The Independent Banker, a trade publication, featured the story of his life in their October 1959 edition. This account was headed: "Fred J. Figge of Ossian, after ?2 years as an Iowa banker, stands as the 'Patriarch of the Banking World'". He retired in i960.

1881

The following items originated in the Ossian Herald. This paper followed the demise of the Independent. It too was to have a short life.

C. W. Williams, proprietor of the Ossian creamery, has bought Mr. Robert's creamery at Harden, three miles east of Postville. He has not decided whether to make butter there, or to gather cream at that point for manufacture here. By this acquisition, Williams controls cream from the cattle on a thousand hills, or thereabouts.

The town, at present, according to advertisements, contains these business houses: a hotel, millinery shop, one farm machinery agent, a dentist, a well-digger, a bank, a harnessmaker, a grocery, a dry goods house, a drug store, a