Arch Glass Mainous (1899-1990)

ARCH GLASS MAINOUS was the son of JOHN TYLER MAINOUS who was the son of LAZARUS LAWSON MAINOUS who was the son of JACOB MANESS). Arch was was born 07 April 1899 in Buck Creek, Owsley Co., Kentucky, and died 17 August 1990 in Lexington, Fayette Co., KY. He married JUANITA NELL CORNETT on the 27th of January 1927 in Miami, Dade Co. Florida (at the First Methodist Church). Juanita Nell was the daughter of WILLIAM MANON CORNETT and CLARA EVERSOLE. Juanita was born on the 25th of December 1904 (Christmas Day) at Mt. Mary Hospital, Hazard, Perry Co., KY, and died  in 1990.

A brief history of Arch Glass Mainous by WIlliam Frank James, Jr. (his grandson):

Arch Glass Mainous was born at home on Buck Creek in Owsley County, Kentucky and was named after the family doctor, Arch Glass. The 1860 Census lists a physican in Owsley County named "Wilson Glass" who at the time had a 6 year old son named Arch. In 1899, the year Arch was born, Arch Glass would have been 45. Arch was the fifth of nine children of John Tyler and Polly Morgan Mainous and was the 11th child of John Tyler. As a young man, he and his father cleared virgin Kentucky forest on the farm and planted crops. He left the farm in 1916 to follow in the footsteps of his brothers, Edward Chester and William Lazarus, to seek a career in banking, beginning in the County bank at Appalachian, Virginia  which Edward Chester owned. During the 1920's Arch moved to Miami, Florida and took a job working at First National Bank of Miami as head of its savings department.  While working in the first national bank of Miami, FL, he met Juanita Nell Cornett, of Perry County, KY, a girl of the who took a job at the Miami bank as a teller (clerk). Arch was Juanita's boss.  They dated during 1926 during the period that a severe hurricane struck the Miami area.  Juanita's mom, Clara Belle Eversole was upset to find out that Juanita was going to be married and worried about Arch's prospects. Juanita stood firm and her younger sister, Claribel joined her sister for the wedding ceremony. They were married in Miami on January 27, 1927 at the First Methodist church in downtown Miami.  Eleven months later Arch and Juanita's first child was born, Joseph Edward Mainous. Arch wanted to name him Arch, Jr. but Juanita refused.  Joseph was selected because her brothers name was Joe. Edward was selected in honor of Edward Chester Mainous, Arch's half-brother who mentored him into banking before his death.

Arch's job was lost as a result of the depression caused in the South Florida area by the 1926 Hurricane (not by the subsequent "great depression"). This forced Arch and Juanita to move back to Kentucky where they lived on John Tyler and Polly Morgan Mainous' farm. Arch temporarily moved to Cleveland, Ohio, where he sold popcorn in front of the movie house and met Bob Hope and his brother who were "hoofers" (dancers) in Vaudeville and who also sold popcorn to help make ends meet. He lived with his sister at the time and send all his money back to Juanita.

Juanita told me (William Frank James, Jr.) that she told Arch to either come back or she was going to leave him. She said that Polly (his Mom) was bossy and she was not going to live on a farm. She was a City girl and had a baby. Polly and Juanita were both strong willed so it was not surprising that they disagreed.  

By 1930, Juanita's father (William Manon Cornett) had just finished being the Deputy Insurance Commissioner for the State of Kentucky (an appointed position).  Manon was able to secure Arch a position as a "Trust Examiner" with the Kentucky State Department of Banking. Because of this position they moved to Georgetown and took an apartment with "little Joe". As a bank examiner he was gone but they were on a town (not a farm) and the position opened up options for him. One bank he reviewed was the "Deposit Guaranty" Bank in Lexington, Kentucky.  Upon examination of this bank it was declared insolvent (pre bank holiday) and was closed. The new organizers asked Arch to participate in the re-opening of the bank as "Citizens Bank". He joined the bank as an Assistant Cashier (junior officer).

During the early 1930's Arch and Juanita (called "Mim" first by her son Joe who could not pronounce the word Mom) moved to Lexington and first rented a small house off of Richmond Road. Later, around 1932, they bought a home on Rosemont Drive  near the railroad tracks for $2,500. It had no central heat and in the winter the sinks would freeze with standing water.  As Citizens Bank improved through the years Arch was promoted and continued to buy increasing amounts of bank stock. In 1938, the purchased a new home at 200 Shady Lane in Shady Lane Estates off of the Nicholasville Pike (road). By that time they had a total of three children. Jane Carol Mainous was born on February 22, 1932 and Arch Glass Mainous, Jr. was born on October, 1934. Mim gave in and said it was ok to name the 3rd baby junior even though convention would have dictated that Joe carry that name.

Also during the first half of the 1930's, Franklin Roosevelt was elected President and declared a "bank holiday". By that time, Kentucky State government was controlled by the Democrats.  In order to "re-open" a bank had to obtain a "certificate" from the State Department of Banking saying that they were sound. This certificate led to the issuance of FDIC insurance for depositors. Without that certificate, no FDIC insurance and no bank. Citizens Bank was financially sound BUT...... Granddad told me that there was a bet going around Lexington that Citizens would not be allowed to re-open - only "Democrat" banks would be.  It seems that the big bank in town was pressing to eliminate the competition and since they were big time Democrats many of the political supporters of these bankers in Frankfort were listening to them for political reasons. 

Arch, not taking no for an answer, drove to Frankfort and sat in the outer office for the head of the Kentucky Department of Banking.  The secretary told Arch that he was "busy" and to come back later (knowing that "later" would be too late for Citizens Bank). Arch refused. He sat outside the guys door knowing that the lobby was the only way in or out. Eventually, late in the evening, the guy gave in and in the wee hour's of the morning gave Arch the "certificate" to re-open. Arch drove back to Lexington, taped the "certificate" to the inside of the front glass door and went home to take a shower and return to the office.  He told me he got little sleep that night but without his persistence, Citizens Bank would have folded and been a casualty of political warfare.

During the 1940's Arch and Mim continued to live in Lexington as Arch's career flourished. When Arch went to get the "mortgage" for his home on Shady Lane in 1938 (the house cost $8,900) he was told that there would be a certain cost. When he went back to the finance company they jacked up the fees on him and told him to "take it or leave it". He paid the money amounting to an extra $100 but decided that there needed to be an "alternative" so that people could get affordable home loans. Banks at that time generally did not make home loans.  In the late 1930's Roosevelt introduced and the Congress passed the Federal Savings and Loan Act. Arch was first in line to file for the name "First Federal Savings and Loan". Another Savings Bank at the time tried to obtain this but was denied. They were known as "Lexington Federal" and were none to pleased that the "name" First Federal had been applied for. 

First Federal was set up as a "mutual" (or depositor owned) institution. It makes mortgages and was one of the ONLY institutions in Lexington, Kentucky that would lend money to African-American's.  At the time, my Granddad told me that the major banks in town refused to loan in certain areas and refused to loan to people of diverse backgrounds. This was not true at Citizens Bank or at First Federal.

Eventually, Citizens Bank merged with the "Union" bank and together they became Citizens Union Bank and Trust Co. Later this bank would be sold by the Mainous' and become a part of BankOne. Arch's son Joe went into the Insurance and Real Estate Business and was involved in First Federal. Arch's son Arch, Jr. went into the banking business and was the CEO of Citizens Union for many years before its sale. Arch's daughter Jane (my mom) married William Frank James. He was an engineer.

Arch ended up being an Executive Vice President of the American Bankers Association in the 1950's and in 1956 was the President of the Kentucky Bankers Association. They were married over 60 years (1927 to 1990) and both died within weeks of each other at home in the house they built in 1938.

Click here for Mainous Genealogy web page

Chick here for Arch and Juanita Nell Cornett Web page

Children of ARCH MAINOUS and JUANITA CORNETT are:

1.  JOSEPH EDWARD5 MAINOUS, b. 09 November 1927

2.  JANE CAROL MAINOUS, b. 22 February 1932

3. ARCH GLASS MAINOUS, JR., b. 29 October 1933