Llandeilo / The Black Ox Bank

We’re all familiar with the story of the drovers who took cattle from West Wales down to the markets in London. But few of us have thought about where they deposited the money on the way home. Welcome to the Black Ox Bank.

David Jones, a drover himself, set up the Black Ox Bank in 1799. He printed his own bank notes, and had a branch here at Bank House by 1842. The name of the bank was deliberate – he wanted to win the favour of the drovers and their money.

By 1887 it had been moved out from the Georgian house, and into a new building next door which replaced a humble thatched cottage. Even in the late C19 Llandeilo still had many thatch roofs.

The Nags Head next door was remodelled to be convenient for those doing business at the bank. The architect was Calder of London, and the iron-bound doors would have been a symbol of the security of the bank as a place to deposit money.

The banking hall is virtually original, and appropriately enough is now home to a company providing financial advice.

Downstairs the old vaults survive.

In the main house, the original bank, little evidence survives of a bank – but then there was probably little evidence to survive – the earliest banks would have been just like offices.