Liberty Bank merges with First Tuskegee Bank

New Orleans — A minority-owned New Orleans bank has bought First Tuskegee Bank, which originated in 1894 as a building and loan association housed in a classroom at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama.

Liberty Bank and Trust Co. says the bank’s first acquisition in Alabama continues 10 years of rapid expansion.

Liberty Bank announced in 2013 that it planned to buy the $60 million Alabama bank. Louisiana regulators approved the deal in December.

First Tuskegee’s website says the bank has two offices in Montgomery and one in Tuskegee, where it was created as Tuskegee Cooperative Building and Loan Association.

First Tuskegee President Neill Wright says becoming part of Liberty Bank will let the bank expand services and get the latest banking technology.

It also operates in Texas, Illinois, Michigan, Kansas and Missouri.