Pen and Teller

Back in the early days of this century, the only way to get to your bank account was through a teller.

That’s one of them, top, waiting to serve a customer in the First National Bank of Tustin, which opened in 1911.

Its predecessor, the Bank of Tustin, was formed in 1888 by shareholders of the Tustin Land and Improvement Co., promoters hoping to cash in on the real estate boom of that decade.

Like all booms, it went bust, but not before an elaborate, Romanesque, two-story brick building had been erected for it on the northwestern corner of Main Street and El Camino Real. After a stint as a drugstore, the building became a bank again.

The interior gave a hint of how seriously bankers wanted to project prosperity, solidity and personal service. The elaborate woodwork and etched glass ushered customers to the teller’s window, where the norms of service were deference and courtesy.

The site is now a parking lot, but the bank survives, in a way. First National Bank was bought by First Western Bank in 1959, which was bought by Lloyds Bank in 1974, whose California operation was bought by Sanwa Bank California in 1986.

And at the Sanwa branch in Tustin, above, you can visit the modern teller that is rapidly replacing the original one: the ATM--unfeeling but efficient.

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OC Then and Now calls, (714) 966-5973; e-mail OCthenand now@latimes.com.