Chapter 9 Financial Institutions BANKS The Bank of New Brunswick was the first bank in Canada to receive a Charter. Its Act of Incorporation became law in March 1820, and it began business in Canada on January 4, 1821. Throughout the nineteenth century the Bank of New Brunswick operated from one office in Saint John. By the turn of the century, competition from other Maritime banks, including the Bank of Nova Scotia, forced the Bank of New Brunswick to open branches else¬ where - one such branch was established in O'Leary . First Bank of Nova Scotia housed in building owned by Locksbie Dennis P.N. Pate was responsible for its opening on September 24, 1908. In the first years of its existence it was located in a small section of what is now Murphy's Quick Mart. It provided jobs for three people - a manager, teller, and a secretary. At the age of twenty-six, Ralph Fielding , became the first manager. A bank that was housed in a tiny portion of a store and employed only three people would seem very miniature compared to the commercial banks operated today; but, during the early 1900's O'Leary 's Bank of New Brunswick was more than adequate to serve the needs of the community. The O'Leary branch was the fourth branch on the Island. Charlottetown , Summerside , and Kensington 255