July 3, 1996

CONTACT:   Michael S. Ives
           President and Chief
           Executive Officer
           Norfolk, Virginia
           (804) 446-6600

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

         CENIT  BANCORP  ANNOUNCES  DEPOSIT  ASSUMPTION
                     AND  BRANCH  TRANSFERS


     (Norfolk, Virginia) -- Michael S. Ives, President and Chief Executive 
Officer of CENIT Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: CNIT), the holding company for 
CENIT Bank, FSB ("CENIT Bank"), today announced that Essex Savings Bank, FSB, 
and CENIT Bank have executed a definitive agreement in which CENIT Bank will 
assume the deposits of five Essex Bank Branches located in Hampton, 
Newport News, Portsmouth, Norfolk, and Grafton, Virginia.

     CENIT Bank will operate the branches located in Hampton and Newport News.  
The branches located in Portsmouth and Norfolk will be consolidated into 
existing CENIT Bank branches in those neighborhoods.  The Grafton branch will 
either be sold to another financial institution or the branch will be closed 
and the deposits transferred to another CENIT Bank branch.  CENIT Bank plans 
to offer employment to all Essex employees in the branches whose deposits are 
transferred to CENIT. 

     At June 30, 1996, these five branches had approximately $70 million in 
deposits in the aggregate.

     Mr. Ives, President and CEO of CENIT, said that this transaction will 
increase CENIT's overall local market share and enhances CENIT Bank's 
presence and branch network on the Peninsula.  In addition, CENIT expects 
this transaction to be accretive to earnings in 1997.  Both parties are 
committed to closing the deposit assumption and branch transfer as soon as 
practicable.

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