Bank Branches › Closed and merged banks › Michigan › Independent Bank-West Michigan
What happened to Independent Bank-West Michigan?
Independent Bank-West Michigan in Grand Rapids, MI (earlier called Bank of Rockford) merged into Independent Bank of Grand Rapids, MI on Sep 15, 2007. Independent Bank is open today.
The chain, step by step
From the day it opened to the bank at the end of the chain today. Each step is one entry in the FDIC's record.
- 1975Bank of Rockford opens in Grand Rapids, MI
- May 11, 1981renamed Independent Bank-West Michigan
- Sep 15, 2007MERGEDIndependent Bank-West Michigan merged into Independent Bank of Grand Rapids, MI.FDIC certificate 22094 ends; its business continues under certificate 27811.
- TodayOPEN
Independent BankMain office Grand Rapids, MI · FDIC certificate 27811 · 59 offices in 1 state on June 30, 2026Every Independent Bank office → Website on file with the FDIC: www.independentbank.com
If you still have something from Independent Bank-West Michigan
A lien that was never released
If a paid-off mortgage, home-equity line or car loan still shows Independent Bank-West Michigan as lienholder, start with Independent Bank. In a merger the surviving bank takes over the other bank's loans, so it is the bank to ask for a recordable lien release; if the loan was sold along the way, it can tell you to whom.
The FDIC says it cannot process lien releases for banks that merged or were acquired without government assistance, which is what the record shows here.
Record the release with the same county office that recorded the original mortgage or deed of trust.
An old account, passbook or CD
Ask Independent Bank to search for the account under the name Independent Bank-West Michigan. A passbook or certificate shows an account existed. It doesn't show the money is still there, and the OCC notes that federal rules require banks to keep most account records for five years.
Accounts nobody touches are eventually turned over to a state. The OCC puts the usual wait at three to five years with no activity, set by each state's law. Search the unclaimed-property program of the state of the owner's last known address on the bank's records, and any other state they lived in. It is free to search and to claim through a state's own site, and MissingMoney.com, an official site of the state administrators' association, searches most states at once.
A safe deposit box
Ask Independent Bank which branch now holds boxes from the Independent Bank-West Michigan office you used. The OCC says a box with no activity for three to five years (the period is set by state statute) is likely treated as dormant, and its contents may be turned over to the state's unclaimed-property program.
Box contents are not covered by FDIC insurance.
Not sure this is your bank?
Many banks shared a name. Match the city and the years above against your paperwork, or search again with the town.
Credit unions were never FDIC-insured and are not in this record; the NCUA credit union lookup covers those. Banks that closed before about 1970 are not in the FDIC's list either.
One caution: banks also sell single branches. If the office you used was sold to a different bank along the way, the account went with the branch, not with this chain. The office list below shows which bank each office reports under now.
This page is drawn from FDIC records and federal guidance. It is not legal advice, and BankBranches is not a bank or a government office. More detail: lien releases · old passbooks and CDs · safe deposit boxes · unclaimed money.
Where the guidance comes from ▾
Its offices in the FDIC deposit reports
27 offices filed under this charter in some year from 1994 on. 16 are still open as of June 30, 2026.
| Office | Now |
|---|---|
| 450 S Dexter StIonia, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 4115 17 Mile Rd NeCedar Springs, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 6750 Cascade Rd SeGrand Rapids, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 78 S Main StRockford, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 41 N State RdNewaygo, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 525 S State StSparta, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 1075 E Wilcox AveWhite Cloud, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 5 S 3rd StSand Lake, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 77 Monroe Center St Nw, Ste 101Grand Rapids, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 720 W Shaw StHoward City, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 323 W Main StCarson City, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 4525 Lake Michigan Dr NwWalker, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 130 S Bridge StBelding, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 404 Perry AveBig Rapids, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 3090 Plainfield Ave NeGrand Rapids, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 29 Church StSaranac, MI | OpenIndependent Bank |
| 5969 Harvey Street, Suite 100Norton Shores, MI | No longer reported |
| 110 A StreetTrufant, MI | No longer reported |
| 3800 Alpine Ave NwComstock Park, MI | No longer reported |
| 4200 East Beltline AvenueGrand Rapids, MI | No longer reported |
| 2551 S State RdIonia, MI | No longer reported |
| 310 West Main StreetBelding, MI | No longer reported |
| 302 Bridge StreetLyons, MI | No longer reported |
| 230 West Main StreetIonia, MI | No longer reported |
| 7389 Croton Hardy DriveNewaygo, MI | No longer reported |
| 4200 East Beltline AvenueGrand Rapids, MI | No longer reported |
| 2646 Henry StreetNorton Shores, MI | No longer reported |
Banks folded into Independent Bank-West Michigan
3 banks merged directly into this charter.
| Bank | Ended |
|---|---|
| The Morley State BankMorley, MI | Dec 31, 1987 |
| The First State Bank of NewaygoNewaygo, MI | May 20, 1985 |
| Western State BankHoward City, MI | May 20, 1985 |
Source: FDIC BankFind institution and history records, read Nov 15, 2026. The FDIC's list covers banks that ended in about 1970 or later. Look up certificate 22094 in the FDIC BankFind Suite to see the government's own entry. Corrections: me@byclaude.net.