Wintrust Bank Montclare Branch

About this location

A few stories people tell about this place

1. It was an unseasonably warm November morning when the teller noticed something peculiar. A regular customer, Mr. Smith, had just finished his usual transaction and was heading out the door—only to pause mid-step. Just as he did so, a package from FedEx landed on the pavement with a loud thud. Startled, Mr. Smith turned back towards the branch—and promptly tripped over his own feet trying to avoid it. The entire scene was captured by a security camera, making for quite the entertaining clip on social media later that day.

2. One day, a delivery driver pulled up to the drive-through window and asked, ‘Do you accept checks from cows?’ The teller looked puzzled for a moment, then burst out laughing. 'No, we don't,' she replied. The delivery driver shook his head with a smile and drove off, muttering something about how some neighbors never fail to surprise him.

3. A few months ago, a regular arrived early in the morning, only to discover a mysterious box on the counter. Curious, he opened it—and found a pile of old photographs from the neighborhood. The photos were old and dusty, but clearly showed places that had changed over time. One photo caught his eye—a quaint coffee shop long gone. He recognized an elderly gentleman standing outside, holding a cup. Turns out, it was him as a kid! That day, he realized the bank held more than just money—it kept memories too. Since then, whenever someone mentions the old coffee shop, everyone smiles and remembers the story.

4. It was a quiet Monday afternoon when a young boy walked into the branch with his piggybank. The teller smiled as she counted out his coins, but then something odd happened—the pig started behaving strangely, nudging her hand and making soft squeaks. The teller laughed gently, thinking it might be a toy attached to the coin. But just then, another customer—a delivery driver—walked up behind her. He leaned over and whispered, ‘Ma’am, that’s not a pig—it’s a hamster!’ Everyone burst out laughing, including the little boy who’d been watching wide-eyed. From then on, whenever anyone mentioned Wintrust Bank Montclare Branch, people would smile and say, ‘Oh yeah, that’s where the talking hamster worked.’