The Bank of North America, chartered by the Confederation Congress on December 31, 1781, and opening for business in Philadelphia on January 7, 1782, is not only the oldest bank in Pennsylvania but also the first incorporated commercial bank in the United States. Conceived by Robert Morris to finance the American Revolutionary War and stabilize the unstable post-colonial monetary system, the institution set the legal and operational precedent for the modern commercial banking industry. Through successive generations of economic development, bank mergers, and nineteenth-century corporate evolutions, the foundational path forged by this historic Philadelphia institution shaped the entire trajectory of American banking.