More than 260 persons came out to St. Mary's Bank's recent annual meeting, the 100th such gathering for the country's first credit union.

"One of the things that we discovered during our 100th anniversary year as we looked back upon the remarkable history of St. Mary's Bank is that among all of the financial institutions that were operating in Manchester at the turn of the last century, St. Mary's Bank is the only one still in operation," said Ovide Lamontagne, chairman of the Manchester, N.H.-based credit union.

Both New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch and Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter, representing New Hampshire's First District, were on hand at the April 14 annual meeting to mark the occasion.

Founded in 1908, St. Mary's Bank serves nearly 60,000 members. The CU said 2008 was a banner year with $186 million in new commercial, mortgage and consumer loans distributed to members. At the end of last year, the CU also had $520 million in member deposits, and a total of $460 million in loans. By not charging ATM fees, members reaped $470,000 in savings, St. Mary's Bank said.