Roots of Dedication and Strength

In recognition of the need for a solid financial institution to serve local customers and businesses, founders organized Farmers and Mechanics Bank in West Point, Virginia on January 28, 1927. Headed by J. Marshall Lewis of Gloucester and housed on the southeast corner of 8th and Main Streets, the Bank immediately purchased the $308,000 assets of the State Bank of West Point.

On July 3, 1933, in the midst of the Great Depression, Citizens Exchange Bank & Trust Company was merged into Farmers and Mechanics Bank. The newly named Citizens and Farmers Bank moved into the Citizens Exchange Bank office across the street, serving as the Bank’s main office. Today our bank is commonly known as C&F Bank in the markets we serve.

W. T. Robinson, first employed as Assistant Vice President in 1948, was named the Bank’s second President in 1961. He served the Bank for 41 years until his successor, Larry G. Dillon, was appointed in 1989.

Responsible Growth

In February of 1978, with assets totaling $37 million, the Bank established its first branch on 14th Street in West Point and began offering drive-through service to customers. Branches for the communities of Providence Forge, Quinton, Norge and Williamsburg were also steadily added over the next ten years.

Bold Steps Forward and Outward

The early 90s was a time of rapid expansion for C&F Bank as it established an operations center in West Point, opened a branch in the Varina District of Henrico County, and acquired new branches in Middlesex County and Tappahannock.

Shareholders also approved a major reorganization by creating a one-bank holding company, C&F Financial Corporation, officially formed on March 8, 1994. Improving our ability to compete in the evolving financial services industry, this also allowed the Bank to invest in one of the state’s first independent trust companies. A new subsidiary, C&F Investment Services, Inc., was also formed to provide a full array of investment products through the convenience of the Bank’s branches.

In the fall of 1995, the Bank formed C&F Mortgage Corporation and assumed the leadership of five mortgage origination offices with 60 employees. Headquartered in Richmond, C&F Mortgage today has 22 offices throughout Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, Delaware, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

Soon after the successful launch of its mortgage business, in 1997 the Bank sold its part-ownership of Virginia Title Center in Roanoke and instead began offering title insurance services through its own C&F Title Insurance Agency, Inc., located within the headquarters of C&F Mortgage Corporation.

A Season of Innovation

While our history is long, our bank has always looked to the future. As the new century brought new technological advances, C&F Bank invested in document imaging and real-time Internet banking, transforming the convenience and speed of transactions for customers.

New branches were established in Williamsburg, Midlothian, Sandston, Mechanicsville, Newport News, Hampton, Chester and Richmond throughout the early 2000s, and the company also established several multi-function facilities. A new branch office on Jamestown Road in Williamsburg served as the first single facility to house C&F Bank, C&F Investment Services, Inc., and C&F Mortgage Corporation offices. The new 25,000-square-foot C&F Center in Midlothian at Alverser Plaza combined C&F banking, mortgage, investment, real estate development and title insurance services into one location.

One of the most significant transitions occurred in December of 2005: after 72 years at its previous location, C&F Bank headquarters moved from downtown West Point to a new 60,000-square-foot facility in Toano’s Stonehouse Commerce Park. This new location enabled the bank to support additional growth in the years to follow and will continue to do so for many years to come.

While size has never been part of the bank’s ambition, prudent acquisitions were made for the purpose of remaining independent. In September of 2002, the company acquired Moore Loans, now known as C&F Finance Company, which provides automobile loans throughout multiple states from offices in Richmond, VA; and Hampton, VA. C&F Bank acquired Central Virginia Bank in 2014, marking the first whole-bank acquisition in our history. The customer-focused integration of CVB’s operations will always be remembered as one of the greatest examples of teamwork in the company’s history.

Growth continued in 2017 with the opening of a commercial and branch location along the downtown mall in Charlottesville. This partnership between commercial and retail has proved valuable in the past and continues to strengthen our growth in new markets.

In April 2020, C&F Bank converted all systems and signage for the recently acquired Peoples Community Bank in the Northern Neck of Virginia. This acquisition takes C&F Bank up to a total of 30 retail bank branches, located between Hampton Roads and Charlottesville and now in the Northern Neck region.

Additionally, in the summer of 2020, C&F Bank opened two new Financial Center's, one in Downtown Richmond and one in Charlottesville. These Financial Centers are a unique experience offering all lines of C&F business, C&F Bank, C&F Wealth Management and C&F Mortgage Corporation under one roof. 

Thomas F. Cherry became the bank’s fourth President in January of 2015, and today also serves as Chief Executive Officer of C&F Financial Corporation and C&F Bank. Larry G. Dillon continues to serve as Executive Chairman of C&F Financial Corporation and C&F Bank. Remarkably, Mr. Cherry is only the fourth Bank President in the 90-year history of the company.

Two new C&F Financial Centers open in 2020. One in Downtown Richmond and one in the Stonefield Shopping Center complex in Charlottesville. These offices will offer banking, commercial, wealth and mortgage services under one roof.

In April 2021, the new 25,000 headquarters for C&F Finance Company is completed and opened. Later in 2021, C&F Bank dedicates 802 Main Street to the Town of West Point. This location will serve as the new headquarters for the town.

As of July 2023, C&F Bank operates 31 banking offices and four commercial loan offices located throughout eastern and central Virginia and offers full wealth management services through its subsidiary C&F Wealth Management, Inc. C&F Mortgage Corporation and its subsidiary C&F Select LLC provide mortgage loan origination services through offices located in Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina and West Virginia. C&F Finance Company provides automobile, marine and recreational vehicle loans through indirect lending programs offered in Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia from its headquarters in Henrico, Virginia.

Photo: C&F Board of Directors ( l-r): Thomas F. Cherry, President & Chief Executive Officer C&F Financial Corporation, C&F Bank, Larry G. Dillon, Executive Chairman C&F Financial Corporation, C&F Bank, Dr. Julie R. Agnew, Richard C. Kraemer Term Professor of Finance Raymond A. Mason School of Business William & Mary, J.P. Causey Jr., Attorney-at-Law J.P. Causey Jr., Attorney-at-Law, Audrey D. Holmes Attorney-at-Law Audrey D. Holmes, Attorney-at-Law, James H. Hudson III, Attorney-at-Law Hudson Law, PLC, Elizabeth R. Kelley, Managing Director Blue Heron Management, LLC, Bryan E. McKernon, President & Chief Executive Officer C&F Mortgage Corporation, James T. Napier, President Napier Realtors, ERA, C. Elis Olsson, Director of Operations Martinair, Inc., D. Anthony Peay Retired, Executive Bank Officer, Paul C. Robinson, Owner & President Francisco, Robinson & Associates, Realtors, George R. Sisson III, Former Chairman Peoples Bankshares, Incorporated, Dr. Jeffery O. Smith, Ed.D., Superintendent Hampton City Schools