St. Mary’s Bank, founded in 1908, is recognized as the first credit union in the United States.
The institution was established in Manchester, New Hampshire, by Franco-American immigrants and community leaders. Its purpose was to provide members with access to savings and affordable credit through a cooperative financial structure.
Credit unions differ from conventional commercial banks because they are member-owned and generally organized around a shared community, employer, association, or other membership connection. St. Mary’s Bank helped introduce this model to the United States during a period when many working families had limited access to mainstream financial services.
The institution is sometimes confused with the first credit union in Canada, which was founded earlier in Quebec. St. Mary’s Bank’s distinction is specifically its status as the first credit union established in the United States, not the world’s first cooperative financial institution.