AmFirst is celebrating its 90th anniversary, marking nine decades of serving members across Alabama while growing from a small credit union into one of the state’s largest financial institutions. There is an AmFirst branch in Vestavia Hills at 1112 Montgomery Highway.
Founded in 1936 as the Iron and Steel Workers Credit Union, AmFirst was established by 19 employees of United States Steel Corporation, who pooled $1,500 to create a member-owned cooperative serving Birmingham’s steel industry. Operating just three days a week from the Ensley Works plant, the credit union initially offered only share accounts and co-signed loans, with cash stored in a cigar box.
Today, AmFirst serves more than 200,000 members through 22 branch locations in 13 Alabama counties and manages more than $2.7 billion in assets…