Exhibit 99
NEWS RELEASE
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                                                           For Immediate Release
                                                                 August 16, 2001


For Further Information Contact:
Jerry Francis, President & CEO
(304) 769-1101

        City Holding Company Announces Agreement to Sell California Banks

         CHARLESTON,  W.Va.,  August 16 /PR  Newswire/ -- City  Holding  Company
(NASDAQ: CHCO), a $2.5 billion bank holding company headquartered in Charleston,
West Virginia, today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to sell
its  California  banks,  Frontier  State Bank and Del Amo Savings Bank,  FSB, to
FirstFed  Financial Corp. City Holding had acquired Del Amo and Frontier in 1998
and 1999 respectively. The transaction calls for City Holding to receive a total
of $23 million in cash for the stock of both  companies.  The  proposed  sale is
subject to  regulatory  approvals  and is  expected  to close  during the fourth
quarter of 2001.

         Jerry Francis,  president and CEO of City Holding Company,  said, "This
is a win/win for the  customers  and  shareholders  of City Holding  Company and
FirstFed Financial Corp. The customers of Frontier and Del Amo will benefit from
the increased resources and in-market ownership that  California-based  FirstFed
provides.  For City shareholders,  this is the last of the planned divestitures.
The Company can now fully focus on its core community banking operations in West
Virginia."

         City Holding  Company is the parent  company of City  National  Bank of
West  Virginia;  Del Amo  Savings  Bank,  FSB;  Frontier  State  Bank;  and City
Financial Corporation. City National Bank, in addition to its banking divisions,
operates CityInsurance Professionals,  an insurance agency offering a full range
of insurance products and services.

         FirstFed  Financial  Corp. is the holding  company for its wholly owned
subsidiary,  First  Federal Bank of  California.  First Federal Bank operates 25
retail savings branches,  all located in Southern California,  which is also its
principal  loan  market.  At June 30,  2001,  FirstFed  had total assets of $4.6
billion and total deposits of $2.3 billion.

         Information  contained  in this news release  includes  forward-looking
statements relating to City Holding's proposed sale of Del Amo and Frontier that
are included  pursuant to the safe harbor  provisions of the Private  Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such  forward-looking  statements involve certain
risks and  uncertainties,  including  a variety of  factors  that may cause City
Holding's  actual results to differ  materially from the anticipated  results or
other expectations  expressed in such forward-looking  statements.  Factors that
might cause such a difference include, but are not limited to, the fact that the
proposed  transaction is subject to certain conditions and may not be completed,
or if  completed,  may not have the effects  anticipated.  City Holding  Company
disclaims any intent or obligation to update this forward-looking information.

SOURCE: City Holding Company