Ulster Savings Bank

For the Irish bank, see Ulster Bank.

Ulster Savings Bank is a mutual savings bank headquartered in Kingston, New York. The bank has 15 branches, all of which are in Ulster County, Orange County, or Dutchess County.

Ulster Savings Bank

Company type	Mutual savings bank
Industry	Banking
Founded	April 12, 1851; 174 years ago (April 12, 1851)
Headquarters	Kingston, New York
Key people	Bill Calderara, CEO
Total assets	$1.33 billion (2025)[1]
Total equity	$108 million (2025)[1]
Number of employees	245
Website	www.ulstersavings.com

Alton B. Parker, president of the bank from 1896 to 1904 and Democratic nominee for President of the United States in 1904.

A recent photo of the original location in Kingston NY, located on Wall street.

History

The bank was founded on April 12, 1851.^[1][2]

During this time, it was named the Ulster County Savings Institution. The day this bank was chartered by the New York State legislature, it became the first savings bank in Ulster County, New York.

On June 19, 1851, Severyn Bruyn, Ulster Savings Bank's first customer, made the first deposit, totaling $120 ($4,536 in 2024).^[3] Archibald Russell (father of Archibald D. Russell) was the first president of the bank; he served until 1870.^[2]

Between 1858 and 1868, deposits grew from $21,982 to $646,922 as the population of Kingston grew from 15,000 to 20,000.^[2]

In 1891, the treasurer and assistant treasurer of the bank were accused of stealing more than $400,000, resulting in the temporary closure of the bank.^[4] Both received prison sentences as a result of their actions in 1892.^[5]

In 1892, John B. Alliger was named treasurer of the bank. At that time, the bank had $1.835 million in deposits. By 1916, the bank had $5.135 million in deposits.^[2]

In 1896, Alton B. Parker was named president of the bank and served until his resignation in 1904.^[2]

In September 2011, Lisa Marie Cathie was named president and chief executive officer of the bank, succeeding Marjorie Rovereto.^[6]

The first President of Ulster Savings Bank, Archibald Russell. One of a few local founders who pooled their assets to create a community financial institution; that today, is the oldest operational bank in the Hudson Valley.

In 2015, Glenn B. Sutherland replaced Lisa Marie Cathie as president and chief executive officer.^[7]

In January 2016, the bank opened a branch in Newburgh, New York.^[8]

In June 2016, William C. Calderara was named president and chief executive officer of the bank.^[9][10]

An illustration from an early newspaper of the first location the bank, which is still operational today and located on Wall street, Kingston, NY.

In 2016, to celebrate its 150th anniversary of inception the bank formalized their regular donations to the community into an official program called the Ulster Savings Bank Charitable Foundation. Prior to this, throughout the bank's long history, millions of dollars have been donated and thousands of local residents helped by its giving programs. This demonstrated the institution's desire to find creative ways to work with their customers to help spread kindness throughout Ulster, Orange, and Dutchess counties.^[11]

Since the turn of the century, Ulster Savings Bank has increased their efforts to decrease their environmental impact, referred to on their website as Corporate Responsibility. These additions and renovations led to the Ulster County Green Business Network to making Ulster Savings Bank into a Certified Green Business^[12][13] in 2021.

In the year 2023, Ulster Savings Bank staff donated over 5000 volunteer hours to local non-profits, and the Charitable Foundation donated $619,000 to charities within the communities that they serve.

Bauer Financial, a national independent financial institution reviewer established in 1983, has rated Ulster Savings Bank with a five-star quality certificate for eight consecutive years between 2017 and 2025.^[14] Bauer uses the same strict barometer to rate all banks and all credit unions and makes those ratings available to all people—for free—on its web site. Bauer does not get paid (nor has it ever) to rate any institution, nor can any institution avoid its rating. Five stars is the highest rating this agency offers, recognizing this Ulster Savings Bank for top tier safety, soundness, and performance.

The Institute for Extraordinary Banking (IEB) began recognizing this bank with Banky Awards in 2019 and awarded a Banky to Ulster Savings Bank annually until 2024.^[15] According to the IEB website: "Banky’s go to the Best Banks in America—those who are philanthropic, have extraordinary customer service, a great culture, are innovative and progressive, and help others manage their money by developing the financial literacy in their markets".^[16]

From 2021 to 2024 consecutively, this bank has won the Chronogrammies Readers' Choice Awards.^[17] As of 2024, Ulster Savings holds first place in the category of Finance & Services in this annual Hudson Valley public voting competition. '21 '22 '23

In 2025, Newsweek included Ulster Savings Bank on their list of America's Best Regional Banks and Credit Unions.^[18] In the same year, this bank was officially certified by Great Place To Work.^[19] Great Place To Work is a trusted leader in understanding workplace culture, employee happiness, and the kind of leadership that fuels creativity, keeps teams strong, and helps businesses grow. Locally, this bank is known for its support of non-profit organizations within their lending area, with an emphasis on helping causes that employees are organically engaged with. Majority of the management and executive team have been found to serve on local non-profit and economic development boards consistently.

Ulster Savings Bank stands today as a healthy bank with a high net worth, strong capital and high-quality assets; as 1 of 449 remaining mutual savings banks in the United States. In New York State, only 26 mutual savings banks remain, including Ulster Savings Bank.

Ulster Savings is the oldest bank in the Hudson Valley, the 8th oldest in New York and the 52nd oldest bank in the country.^[20]