Our History

It all began in 1925 with our roots firmly planted in agriculture. Since then, COUNTRY Financial® has been adding products and services to meet the changing needs of our clients.

Our history

1925

We took our first steps toward providing financial security when the COUNTRY Mutual Insurance Company® began selling fire and lightning insurance.

1926

We added crop hail and farm equipment insurance to our offerings to help our clients protect the things that were important to their livelihood.

1927

Adding auto insurance allowed us to provide our clients another important piece of financial security.

1929

We moved another step closer to providing financial security to our clients by adding COUNTRY Life Insurance Company®.

1935

Our first female representative was hired. At this time, we had an agency force of 100 and rate books and pencils were the tools of the trade.

1953

In May of this year, COUNTRY Preferred Insurance Company® incorporated and began officially doing business in June of the same year.

1961

Our downtown Chicago office became too small and too far from our clients by the end of the 1950s. Our home office relocated to Bloomington, IL and opened in September, 1961.

1965

The addition of COUNTRY® Capital Management Company, a registered broker dealer, allowed us to offer our clients securities product, which has grown to include mutual funds, variable annuities, variable life insurance and 529 College Savings Plans.

1997

Building on one of our guiding principles – putting people first – we made our client service center available 24 hours a day.

2010

85 years young and still helping our clients protect what matters most. Over the years, we have grown to serve clients in both rural and urban settings in many states across America.

Country Financial Headquarters

Our growth

1964

Mid-America Fire and Marine Company was purchased, adding Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma to our area of operation.

1980

Product, service and geographic expansion put COUNTRY Financial® on the map beyond Illinois in the 80s.

1998

We formed an alliance with Middlesex Mutual Assurance Company, Middletown, CT.

2001

In 2001, Mutual Service Insurance (MSI) joined COUNTRY Financial®, adding four states to a new Central Region.

2005

An alliance was formed with the Cotton States Insurance Group, Atlanta, GA, operating in Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Tennessee.

2006

In 2006, we formed an alliance with Holyoke Mutual Insurance Company in Salem (Salem, MA) and started a new marketing initiative under the name MiddleOak®.

Country Financial employees collaborating at tables

Our brand

Country Financial 1942 logo

1942

Farmers Mutual Reinsurance Company was chartered in 1925 by the Illinois Agricultural Association® (IAA) as a reinsurance company for county Farm Bureaus in Illinois. The 1942 logo was a circle with triangle points displaying the IAA's initials.

Country Financial 1945 logo

1945

COUNTRY Life Insurance Company was formed in 1929. To charter, the company asked farmer members to pledge $100 to get the company started. The 1945 logo used stylized descriptive text as its brand.

Country Financial 1972 logo

1972

Prior to 1959, our insurance services (Country Life, Country Mutual, etc.) weren't marketed together. The Country Companies was the first name used to identify all of them. The corporate color was blue, with the C’s often being shown in blue.

Country Financial 1986 logo

1986

In 1979, The Country Companies became simply COUNTRY COMPANIES and the corporate color was changed to green. The new color and hard edged business font reflected our emphasis on financial services in addition to insurance. This 1986 version is a simplified version of a 1982 logo.

Country Financial 2000 logo

2000

The 2000 logo was used as a transition to the oval, a shape preferred by consumer focus groups. The goal of the transition was to make the word COUNTRY more prominent and rely on the oval to make our brand easy for consumers to identify.

Country Financial 2002 logo

2002

The word "Companies" was reduced in size. The tagline "Insurance & Financial Services" was added to help clients identify that we were more than an insurance company.

Country Financial 2008 logo

2008

The next step in our brand development was to use COUNTRY alone in the oval. The word "Financial" took the place of "Insurance & Financial Services" to identify us, making the word COUNTRY and the oval shape even more prominent.

Country Financial 2014 logo

2014

Our logo today brings "COUNTRY" and "Financial" together to help people who aren't familiar with us understand what we do.

Country Financial entrance

Our companies

For more than 90 years, COUNTRY Financial employees and representatives have been helping individuals and their families achieve financial security.

COUNTRY Financial® representatives offer financial security products and services in 19 states.

COUNTRY Mutual Insurance Company® products

COUNTRY Mutual Insurance Company products include auto, home, farm and business insurance. 

COUNTRY Preferred Insurance Company® products

COUNTRY Preferred Insurance Company products include auto and home insurance. 

COUNTRY Casualty Insurance Company® products

COUNTRY Casualty Insurance Company products include auto and home insurance.

COUNTRY Life Insurance Company® products

COUNTRY Life Insurance Company products include a variety of life insurance policies. 

COUNTRY Investors Life Assurance Company® products

COUNTRY Investors Life Assurance Company includes a variety of life insurance policies and annuities. 

COUNTRY Trust Bank®

COUNTRY Trust Bank offers investment management, trust, and retirement planning services.

COUNTRY® Capital Management Company

COUNTRY Capital Management Company is a registered broker dealer offering securities products including mutual funds, variable annuities, variable life insurance, and 529 College Savings Plans.

Ready to start?

Start online, find a local rep, or call us at 866-COUNTRY (866-268-6879). We'll help you find solutions that work for you. 

COUNTRY Financial® is a family of affiliated companies (collectively, COUNTRY) located in Bloomington, IL. Learn more about who we are.

For product and service information, read our Terms & Conditions. Read our full Financial Services Summary Handbook.

NOT FDIC-INSURED

May lose value

No bank guarantee

Investment management, retirement, trust and planning services provided by COUNTRY Trust Bank®. 

Registered broker/dealer offering securities products: COUNTRY® Capital Management Company, 1711 General Electric Rd, PO Box 2222, Bloomington, IL 61702-2222, 1-866-551-0060. Member FINRA.  Read our full Customer Relationship Summary and Investor Handbook.

Auto, home, business and farm policies issued by COUNTRY Mutual Insurance Company®, COUNTRY Casualty Insurance Company® or COUNTRY Preferred Insurance Company®, Bloomington, IL.

Life insurance policies issued by COUNTRY Life Insurance Company® and COUNTRY Investors Life Assurance Company®, Bloomington, IL.