During the early 1930’s, the depths of the Great Depression gripped the nation, and bank deposits and cash reserves were falling. Loans that financial institutions had booked could not be collected to keep up with the withdrawal demands of savings customers. Many institutions around the country failed.

New legislation was passed in 1932 enabling citizens of a community to apply for a federally chartered savings and loan association. Thirteen prominent businessmen of Hammond decided to pool their resources to organize a new financial institution. On November 9, 1933 the FHLB Board approved the application submitted by these founders to organize a Federal Savings and Loan Association for the purpose of providing a facility where people could invest funds safely and finance their homes with locally raised money.

In the 1934 FHLB Board approved the name "Citizens" as it was the citizens of the community who invested a total of $6,140 to start the new organization. A book could be written about the history of Citizens in northwest Indiana. Citizens has continued to grow and change. Over the years Citizens has acquired other institutions, opened new branches, and became publicly traded. There have been several name changes but Citizens has always been about the citizens of the communities they service.

The billions of dollars invested in home loans, and the millions paid in interest on savings accounts certainly helped hundreds of communities and an inestimable number of families attain financial security over the decades. Likewise, the millions of dollars contributed back to the local communities in the form of cash donations and a rich history of volunteerism by the Citizens family of employees have left an indelible impression on this region.