DINWIDDIE COUNTY, Va. — Four generations of the Clements family have walked through the front door of Bank of Southside Virginia — and CEO Will Clements said that legacy is something he carries with him every day.
"It's very moving coming in every day and knowing that so many generations have got us to this point," Clements said.
The bank's story began when three small community banks merged together in the early 1930s.
"The goal back then was to find a little bit of economy to scale. A little bit of community. A little bit of power in numbers," Clements said.
The merger came at one of the most difficult moments in American history — the Great Depression.
"Looking back on that initial support from the community members, shareholders, residents really propelled us into the next 100 years," Clements said.
Now 121 years later, Bank of Southside Virginia operates 15 branches serving 15 different communities, with its headquarters remaining in the Carson community of Dinwiddie County.
"It's a very special thing to have a bank headquartered in the community," Clements said.
Customer loyalty has been a hallmark of the institution.
"Roughly a fifth of our customers have been with us for 40-plus years. And that's as far back as our computer records go. We have ledger books that go beyond that," Clements said.
The bank has also embraced technology without abandoning its community roots. BSV was an early adopter of the internet and digital banking tools.
"Back in the '90s we launched our webpage, long before other community banks. We've had mobile banking, mobile check deposit. We like to be at a competitive clip for a community bank," Clements said.
But Clements is clear that technology has its limits.
"A robot is not going to take your phone call," Clements said.
It was Clements' great-grandfather who ran the bank in its early years. His grandfather later ushered in the drive-through — and the original drive-up drawer is still functioning at the Carson headquarters today.
"This is the original drive-up," Clements said. "It's the original drive-up drawer. It's still functioning. They don't make them like they used to."
The Clements family's investment in Carson extends well beyond the bank itself. When the Appomattox Library's bookmobile served the area, the family saw an opportunity to do more. They purchased an old train station that was no longer in use, moved it away from the railroad tracks, and created the first permanent library in Carson.
"Originally the Appomattox Library devoted resources to a bookmobile here and we thought, why not help out and have a permanent library here in Carson. We had a train station no longer being used," Clements said.
A few years later, a caboose was added to the library — becoming a special place for children to learn to read as part of the Appomattox Library's summer reading program.
An old fire station was also purchased and repurposed.
"We do a lot of our facilities work there and we also have an employee training center on the old office side," Clements said.
Perhaps no single item captures the bank's philosophy of honoring the past while embracing the future better than a 1931 Model A — which Clements has converted into a fully electric vehicle.
"To keep it modern, I have converted it to be a full EV. It's electric," Clements said.
"We wanted to respect the past but know our future," Clements said.
Clements recently celebrated his 20th year with the bank. He said he remains committed to investing money back into the community and to keeping the bank's headquarters in Carson.
CBS 6 is committed to sharing community voices on this important topic. Email your thoughts to the CBS 6 Newsroom.
📲: CONNECT WITH US
Blue Sky | Facebook | Instagram | X | Threads | TikTok | YouTube
This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy. To learn more about how we use AI in our newsroom, click here.
