Wachovia Bank

Wachovia is the Latin form of the German name Wachau. In 1753, Moravian settlers gave this name to a tract of land they acquired in North Carolina. The settlers chose the name because the land resembled a valley along the Danube River known as Der Wachau.

In 1879, a bank opened in the town of Winston under the name Wachovia National Bank. Fourteen years later, Wachovia Loan and Trust opened nearby. The two merged in 1911 to form Wachovia Bank and Trust, which evolved into Wachovia Corporation.