The Old Bank Building

Strasburg’s Main Street was once part of the Old Conestoga Road, a route used by travelers and wagons carrying goods through Lancaster County. The town grew into a place where people from the surrounding farms came to shop, trade, and conduct business. At Center Square, the building now known as the Old Bank Building became part of that busy commercial life.

Christian Bachman and his father, Jacob, acquired a building at Strasburg Square in the 1850s. Christian sold furniture and operated an undertaking business there. Later, the First National Bank of Strasburg occupied half of the first floor. For a time, customers could come to the same building to see furniture or conduct their banking. 

The bank was founded in 1863, shortly after the federal government established a new national banking system. It received charter number 42, making it one of the early banks to join that system. The institution eventually expanded beyond Strasburg, while the building at Center Square continued to be known for the bank that had occupied it.

With its tall windows and ornamented entrance, the Old Bank Building remains a distinctive part of Main Street. Its history holds more than the story of one bank: it recalls the furniture trade, a family business, and the days when much of the surrounding community’s commerce took place in the heart of Strasburg.