Historic Moments

Serving customers since 1852

For generations, we’ve been helping people go further. From exchanging gold coins for paper checks to enabling online transactions, we’re continuously innovating so our customers can get ahead.
Wells Fargo branch exterior on busy street corner. Three people talking together walk past the entrance.
Featured photo caption: Connecting early customers and communities

On March 18, 1852, Wells Fargo started as a bank and express company to address demand for secure payment tools at a time of technological revolution. Trains, canals, and stagecoaches created more interconnected communities and developed new industries.

Wells Fargo’s network of express offices facilitated moving boxes of gold and silver as well as money by paper check and even “online” by telegraph. While originally intended to connect gold rush California with East Coast markets, Wells Fargo had 10,000 offices in the U.S. and around the globe by 1918.

During WWI, Wells Fargo’s express business was nationalized by the federal government for war supply mobilization. Overnight, Wells Fargo’s business pivoted to a single bank in San Francisco, California.

“Proper respect must be shown by all—let them be men, women, or children, rich or poor, white or black—it must not be forgotten that the Company is dependent on these same people for its business.”

Wells, Fargo & Co.’s Express Instruction Book, 1888

Learn more about our history of supporting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Modern Marvel

The story of our bank in the 1900s is the story of adaption and evolution into a full-service bank. It is a marvel of the modern age that you can go to one institution for a commercial loan, investment advisement, and a secure savings.

This was the dawn of a new age at the bank with an assortment of products being launched and branches opening at a rapid pace.

Powering this growth were the bank’s first computers to automate processing of an ever-increasing volume of transactions. Wells Fargo hired developers and partnered with leading minds to explore new uses of technology and developed revolutionary new innovations.

Redefining Wells Fargo

In 1995, Wells Fargo only had branches in California. Over the next dozen years, Wells Fargo continued a trend of growing a variety of banking services in more places through a series of mergers. Each institution brought under the Wells Fargo name carried its own history of community building and innovation.

In the shadow of all these mergers, Wells Fargo entered a period of transformation, a time to redefine what it meant to bank and work at Wells Fargo.

Today, we continue to look for ways to do what’s right for our customers, we seek broad impact in our communities, and we’re proud of the important role we play for our customers, our communities, and the U.S. economy.

Leather-bound booklet opened to page with a series of names including Henry Wells and William Fargo. A red seal accompanies each signature.
Wells, Fargo & Co. started when Henry Wells, William Fargo, and other co-founders signed the Articles of Incorporation in New York City.
Three stagecoaches with horses lined up outside wooden building with Wells Fargo sign. A steam train sits on tracks next to the building. A crowd of people gather and sit on the coaches.
Wells Fargo used stagecoaches from 1852 to the 1910s. During the 1860s, Wells Fargo owned and operated the largest stagecoach company in U.S. history.
Five people in rowboats and floats with Wells Fargo Co Exp Rescue Party banner. Behind them is a farm and field underwater. A handwritten note dates the photograph to Bay City 1913.
Our history is also about the employees who volunteered their time to make their communities survive and thrive. This group of employees responded to a flood in Texas in 1913 by creating a rescue party and opening their home for impacted neighbors.
Crowd outside of a building with a Wells Fargo sign. A bouquet of orange balloons is held by a woman in a yellow dress. A man in a suit speaks at a podium.
In 1952, Wells Fargo had two branches. Over the next dozen years, Wells Fargo had nearly 200 branches with more openings planned.
Dalmatian curled up and sleeping in front of cozy fire in fireplace. Ad reads Loans for dream homes. The unmistakable warmth of a hearth that’s truly yours. The quiet joy of coming home to the kind of home you always dreamed of. Mere fantasy? Not to the people who know Wells Fargo. We specialize in the loans that make dream homes come true. Yours, too. Wells Fargo Bank formerly Wells Fargo Bank American Trust Company Member Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Banking Offices throughout Northern California.
In the post WWII economy, consumer credit demand rose dramatically. Wells Fargo responded by shifting gears. In this new economy, Wells Fargo became one of the biggest consumer banks in the State of California. It specialized in consumer credit—home loans, credit cards, car loans and more.
Man in red vest holds a magnetic tape wheel. In the background are large computers and a man accessing a computer monitor.
The bank’s Operations Center created one centralized location for all customer accounts. Before, each branch kept its own records.
Three people in Norwest Mortgage t-shirts stand behind sign that reads: A house raising for Habitat for Humanity June 4, 1994. In the background is a newly built house.
In 1998, Norwest acquired Wells Fargo. This extended the bank across 21 states, including Minnesota and Iowa. It also expanded the bank’s home and consumer lending business. Our relationship with Habitat for Humanity starts with Norwest in 1993.
Young girl plays with bubbles at a family picnic. A mother and grandmother set plates on a table outside. In the background two brothers and a father stand talking. Next to this scene it reads: What can birth, graduation, marriage, college, first job, promotion, last job, and retirement teach us about financial advice? Oh, we left out braces. Life has its moments. And in some way, shape or form, those moments involve money. That’s where Wachovia comes in. As the nation’s fourth largest bank holding company and third largest brokerage, we’re here to provide advice on all things money. Because wherever you are financially, we’re right there with you. Wachovia uncommon wisdom. Banking, Financial Planning, Managing Wealth, Investment Banking.
During the height of the 2008 banking crisis, Wells Fargo agreed to merge with Wachovia. This extended the bank’s footprint across 39 states, including North Carolina and New York. It also broadened the bank’s wealth and international businesses.
Group of Wells Fargo employees carry a banner that reads Wells Fargo 30 years of pride down a busy street with crowds on the side.
In the past 30 years, Employee Resource Networks evolved from informal groups of employees to enterprise-endorsed institutions committed to advocating for underrepresented voices and career development.
Smiling woman in red jacket on a beach holds up a flip phone that has a series of financial related text messages.
In 2007, Wells Fargo became the first major financial services company in the nation to offer both browser and text-based account access via mobile devices. The Wells Fargo app launched in 2011.
Smiling woman opens door to flower store and places open sign on window.
Starting in 2020, the bank committed approximately $420 million in Paycheck Protection Program processing fees through a new program, the Open for Business Fund, to support small businesses owned by people who have been hit hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Alyssa Bentz

Alyssa Bentz is a Corporate Historian for Wells Fargo.

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