Stevenson’s first bank opened for business in 1907 with William P. Christensen as its first cashier, and George F. Christensen, Sr. joined the bank in 1912 before being elected president in 1920. As the Great Depression deepened, Stevenson Bank was threatened with closure, and on July 17, 1932, president George Christensen called a meeting of depositors and directors and asked depositors to sign over 60% of their deposits to make cash available to liquidate frozen assets. More than 350 people attended a depositors’ meeting that evening, and by midnight $66,000 had been pledged, enough to avert the bank’s failure. The Skamania County Pioneer printed a MESSAGE OF CHEER in its July 18, 1932 issue showing bank assets of $171,227.96. The bank continued to expand, and in 1956 a new building was constructed on Second Street; it is now First Independent Bank.