Originally chartered on June 18, 1834, as a mutual savings institution, Gardiner Savings Institution was officially organized on June 26, 1834. Founder Robert Hallowell Gardiner allowed his office on Water Street to become the bank's first location.

In those days, Gardiner was a bustling port where sailboats and steamboats like the “Kennebec,” which previously served as the bank’s logo, delivered their cargo for distribution to residents and businesses in the central region of the state.

The hours that Savings Bank of Maine offices keep today, which include Saturday mornings and 7 days a week at the Randolph branch, are in dramatic contrast to the one hour each week that the bank was open in 1834. Even then the bank provided convenient access for a sizeable geographic area. Account number one, opened the second week, was in the name of Edward A. Fry, a minor seven years of age, subject to the control of Ebenezer Fry of “Vassalborough.”

Over the first hundred plus years, the bank’s growth was modest. In fact, it wasn’t until 1956 that the bank opened the doors to a new office building. Fifteen years later, the bank opened its first branch in Wiscasset and, in 1976 added a branch in Richmond. The bank’s first merger was with Hallowell Savings and Loan in 1979.

In the next 10 years, Gardiner Savings expanded north first with locations in Manchester, Winthrop and Augusta and then north and south by purchasing two branches (Bath and Waterville) from a large New England based bank and adding new offices in Brunswick, Topsham and Randolph along with 5 new branches in existing towns for a total of 13 new locations.

The following 10 years began with more expansion on Maine’s mid coast adding Boothbay and Newcastle locations on the coast. Some further expansion in existing markets took place with a 2001 merger with Augusta Federal Savings followed by the opening of offices in Oakland and Readfield.

Technological advances then provided the ability to enter markets beyond contiguous cities, and Maine’s northern and eastern borders were added to the franchise in 2007.

The purchase of First Citizens Bank with offices in Fort Kent, Caribou, Presque Isle, Houlton and Lincoln and a merger with Calais Federal Savings and Loan with offices in Calais and Machias brought a total of seven new locations. These additional locations and growth of the bank also facilitated the change in name and logo in 2007 to recognize the expanded geographical presence. A logo featuring the State of Maine, set in a horizon of the Bank’s traditional blue color, was chosen to represent the Bank’s growing presence.

Today, the Bank has 29 offices, nearly 300 employees and almost 1 billion dollars in assets. It is providing loans for homeowners and for businesses, personal and business deposit accounts, and a wide variety of additional services. The Bank now serves communities in Northern, Eastern, Central and Coastal Maine.

While proudly pointing to its record of longevity as the second oldest savings bank in Maine, Savings Bank of Maine now offers an impressive range of modern banking tools including computer, internet and telephone banking, ATM’s and other conveniences. Recognizing that much of its success derives from personal contact with customers, the bank continues to provide professional, knowledgeable staff at each branch location, dedicated to treating customers fairly, every day, every month, every year… since 1834.