The Old Marshall House Bank Building was the first bank in the Illinois territory located in Old Shawneetown, along the levee. Merchant John Marshall recognized the need for a safe haven for the money carried by the salt traders from the Salines. Salt, the first industry in Illinois, was an extremely lucrative one. In 1816 the bank had a capital of $300,000. At one point a guard slept over the trap door leading to a barrel in the basement where the money was stored. In 1838 the board of directors refused a $5,000 loan to Chicago saying that it was too far from Shawneetown and the river to amount to anything. In the 1970s the Old Marshall House Bank Building went through renovations and is currently a museum. These photos show the deteriation of the building before renovations began.