History

Initially incorporated as The People's Bank in 1852, our institution was established by several prominent business owners in the twin villages of Damariscotta and Newcastle. On May 30, 1864 the bank was chartered by the US Treasury as The First National Bank of Damariscotta.

Further up the coast, The First National Bank of Bar Harbor was organized in 1888, also by a group of notable business leaders – a hard-working bank built on strong community values. By 1991, the bank recorded nearly $96,000,000 in total assets; in 2004, First National had seven branches, from Blue Hill to Calais.

On January 14, 2005, The First National Bank of Damariscotta and The First National Bank of Bar Harbor combined their strong deposit and lending forces into one financial institution, becoming the third largest bank headquartered in Maine, with combined assets of more than $675 million. 

Today First National Bank has assets exceeding $2.5 billion and serves Maine from our 18 branches. Our hard-working staff is all in on you and love to have you visit. If you are banking on the go, we also offer a variety of electronic services to meet your needs.

Now, long since our modest beginnings, we still stand strong as an independent bank, while serving the community much wider than the twin villages of Damariscotta and Newcastle. Yet local ownership remains as essential to our mission today as it was for the beginning founders doing business along the shores of the Damariscotta River many years ago.

Though we have grown substantially through the years, we will always stay committed to our core values of community and customer service. We welcome you to visit any of our locations, meet some of our over 250 employees, and discover all the ways First National Bank wants you to dream first and then go from there. Because you can.