First Bank of Murphy in Murphy, North Carolina

Most Popular PlacesRandom PlaceListsItinerariesAdd a PlaceDownload the App First Bank of Murphy The People’s Treasure Con Chim Islet WWI Pillbox All the United States North Carolina Murphy First Bank of Murphy This remarkable 125-year-old building has survived a bank heist, a rooftop dragon, and more than a century of changing businesses; today, it lives on as FairyCross Bottle Shop. Original historic features of the facade of this building built in 1899 llachancemurphy / Atlas Obscura User 33 Peachtree St. as it looks today in Downtown Murphy, NC llachancemurphy / Atlas Obscura User Original historic features of the facade of this building built in 1899 llachancemurphy / Atlas Obscura User 33 Peachtree St. as it looks today in Downtown Murphy, NC llachancemurphy / Atlas Obscura User Original historic features of the facade of this building built in 1899 llachancemurphy / Atlas Obscura User 33 Peachtree St. as it looks today in Downtown Murphy, NC llachancemurphy / Atlas Obscura User Original historic features of the facade of this building built in 1899 llachancemurphy / Atlas Obscura User Original historic features of the facade of this building built in 1899 llachancemurphy / Atlas Obscura User 33 Peachtree St. as it looks today in Downtown Murphy, NC llachancemurphy / Atlas Obscura User Welcome to one of Downtown Murphy’s oldest buildings and quite possibly one of its most colorful. This was once the Bank of Murphy, established on January 16, 1899.

Today, it’s home to FairyCross Bottle Shop. Apparently, after more than a century, this building decided it had earned the right to stop dealing in money and start dealing in wine. Before you head inside, take a good look at the marble steps.

Notice how worn they are? Those aren’t just scratches and weathering. They’re the footprints of history...literally.

For decades, thousands of customers, bankers, shopkeepers, and assorted characters walked through these doors, slowly wearing down the marble beneath their feet. The building is one of the oldest surviving commercial structures in downtown Murphy. Its original brick façade was covered with stucco sometime in its long history, but many of its architectural details remain, including the graceful arched doors and windows and the original marble threshold.

When the Bank of Murphy opened its doors in 1899, A.F. Harshaw was vice president, and Luke Bayless served as the bank’s first manager and cashier. Bayless was credited with helping make the bank successful through his financial knowledge and sound business judgment.

And then, just five years later, someone decided to put that sound financial institution to a rather explosive test. On September 9, 1904, burglars broke into the bank and blew open the vault. They made off with more than $4,000, a considerable fortune at the time, and apparently left behind only a few pennies.