COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) – A new Palmetto Citizens Federal Credit Union branch opened Monday in a historic building on Main Street in Whitmire, restoring in-person banking services to the small Newberry County town for the first time in more than two years.
The branch opened after the town’s longtime First Citizens Bank location closed in December 2023.
The Piggly Wiggly grocery store had closed in February 2022, leaving Whitmire, a town of roughly 1,400 residents located about an hour northwest of Columbia, a food and banking desert.
“Kind of a shock to the town,” Mayor Billy Hollingsworth said, recalling the closures.
He said these decisions require residents to drive to Prosperity or Newberry, often a 45-minute round trip, for basic necessities.
Lifelong Whitmire resident Douglas Chapman said the lack of services hit vulnerable residents especially hard.
“This little town has a lot of older people in it and people that don’t have transportation, and they do the best they can,” Chapman said. “This town is dying for industry, and we need a grocery store real bad.”
Palmetto Citizens Federal Credit Union President Robert Dozier said once the organization became aware of Whitmire’s situation through WIS reporting, he contacted the mayor and committed to restoring banking services.
The branch opened following extensive renovations to the Main Street building.
“We believe that every town deserves in-person financial services, and that’s kind of what we do to take care of our community,” Brian Crocker, Palmetto Citizens VP of retail banking, said.
In its first days of operation, the branch has seen new personal accounts open and received inquiries from local businesses. One resident is looking into transferring a mortgage to the credit union.
Hollingsworth said he is more optimistic than ever about Whitmire’s future.
“It just shows me that people will take an interest in Whitmire if we can just get them in here,” Hollingsworth said.
He believes it could be a sign of things to come, with several vacant storefronts along Main Street.
The mayor pointed to recent additions, including an auction house that has begun drawing visitors into town, as signs of momentum.
Hollingsworth added he has reached out to numerous chains in an effort to attract a grocery store to Whitmire, but has not had success. He said he will continue pursuing options.
“As long as we keep trying, sooner or later something will break,” he said.
Chapman said he hopes the new branch signals broader change for the community.
“This is a town that needs some help,” he said. “I think this bank is a start, I really do.”
The new branch, Palmetto Citizens’ 15th, is part of the credit union’s continued expansion across the Midlands and comes as the organization marks its 90th year of service.
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