Hills Bank & Trust

Hills Bank and Trust Company is a bank based in Hills, Iowa, U.S.A., with 19 offices in three eastern Iowa counties, with more than 425 employees and total assets over $2.5 billion. While still headquartered in a town of fewer than 900 people, Hills Bank is one of the largest independent banks in Iowa, with over 120,000 customers. The bank was founded in 1904, and is a subsidiary of Hills Bancorporation, a holding company established on December 12, 1982. The bank's president is Dwight O. Seegmiller.

On February 15, 1904, Hills Savings Bank was founded by 19 local citizens with $10,000 among them and the dream of organizing a local savings bank. Subscriptions for stock in the bank were purchased with each share valued at $100. A board of directors was elected and plans were made to construct a building.

Later that summer, the Hills Savings Bank opened for business with only a handful of employees. Albert Droll was hired as a teller in 1921 and officially became president in 1965.

Approximately 25 years after the bank’s doors opened, the Great Depression struck causing 600 banks in Iowa to fail. Among those to close were all five banks in Iowa City, and seven of nine banks in Cedar Rapids. This was a defining time and turning point for the small Hills Savings Bank in Hills, whose doors remained open through the Great Depression.

In 1934, Hills Savings Bank reorganized under the new name of Hills Bank and Trust Company. The name change more accurately reflected the services that the bank offered. At that time, the total capital of the bank was $30,000.

The bank expanded in 1952, when a new one-story building was built east of the existing building. During that time, the town of Hills boasted a population of 211 and the total resources of the bank were $3,132,200 —“the largest per capita resources of any bank in an Iowa community” as stated in an Iowa City Press-Citizen article, June 1952.

For many years, Iowa banking law allowed banks to establish a bank branch only in towns where the boundaries were contiguous. In 1979, the city of Hills annexed their small town to Iowa City by way of the old Rock Island Railroad track, which connected Hills to Iowa City. This annexation provided an opportunity for the first Hills Bank location to be opened outside of Hills, in the city of Iowa City. Hills Bank could then better serve its customers in the Iowa City area.

The first Iowa City office was completed in November 1982 on South Gilbert Street. The branch opened for business with 10 employees. At that time, the total assets of Hills Bank exceeded $100 million, making it the third largest bank in Iowa City.

In 1984, Hills Bank purchased UniBank & Trust. This acquisition added two more branches, one on Highway 6 in Coralville and another in downtown North Liberty. In March 1985, John Hughes publicly announced plans to relocate the downtown North Liberty office to the new site.

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