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Martins Bank’s new Head Office  building
is completed in 1932, and Liverpool Foreign, until that point located at 3 FENWICK
STREET Moves to the new
building, taking No 6 Water Street as its new address, and later
Liverpool Overseas as its
new title.
When Martins Bank and
Barclays Bank merge in 1969, the Branch is kept on by Barclays and it reverts
to its original name - Liverpool Foreign.
When we looked through the records for this branch, there were no end
of stories available in Martins Bank Magazine.
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In Service: 24 October 1932 until 15 December 1969
Image © Martins Bank Archive Collections: This Watercolour
by Gordon Hemm,
was originally owned by the Architect of 4 Water Street,
Herbert J Rowse.
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Many of these focus on staff
retirements, but we have picked three different articles featuring various
talents of the Liverpool Overseas Branch Staff. First, we meet Elaine O’Hare who makes her
own valuable and unique contribution to Martins Bank Magazine. Then we hear about Mr D Leadbetter, whose success in the Institute of Bankers’
Examinations receives special attention.
We round things off with the retirement party for Mr G
S M Rooke, who says goodbye both to the Bank and
Liverpool overseas branch, in 1969…
An Artistic flair…
 Elaine
O'Hare entered the Bank on 11 July 1955, and a few weeks afterwards she came
to see us in Editorial Department to ask whether there was anything she could
do for the Magazine. This was the first occasion since the Magazine was
started in 1946 on which a girl on the staff has made such a request and she
could not possibly know what a warm glow of pleasure it gave to the Editor. Elaine was
educated at West Kirby Grammar School and after leaving she attended the Wallasey
Art School for a year full time, and for two terms subsequently as a night
school pupil. Her work for the Magazine first appeared in the Winter
1955 issue and since then she has illustrated poems, enlivened reports of
functions of which photographic illustrations were not available, and has
always been eager and willing to try to carry out every request which has
been made. In this issue appear two
samples of her work which called for imaginative treatment of an exacting
kind. We are glad to place on record our
appreciation of the constant help she has given us and to express our
admiration for her undoubted talent. We hope that the association between us
will be a long one. Elaine works in Liverpool Overseas branch.
A number of studious years…
  {Examinations
News - Mr D Leadbetter is the winner of the Whitehead Prize for Finance of
Foreign Trade and Foreign Exchange and winner of the Lombard Association
First Prize} {The Chief General
Manager's Prize, awarded annually to the candidate gaining the highest marks
in completing the Banking Diploma examinations, has been won by Mr D.
Leadbetter (Liverpool Overseas) for 1964. In 1963 he won the Whitehead Prize
and the Lombard Association First Prize for Finance of Foreign Trade and
Foreign Exchange. He was placed 12th equal
of the 578 candidates from all banks who gained the Diploma in September
1964.}
Messages from Moscow?
  The
day Sidney Rooke retired from Liverpool Overseas had an undeniably
international flavour. There was a goodwill telephone call from 'our man in
Paris' (Mr Peter Cawsey), a mysterious greetings cable ostensibly from Moscow—later traced to Exchange Department, and
calls from friends in London and other parts of the country. At Mr Rooke's request there was no formal presentation
but at a gathering of the staff in the manager's room on the morning of April
22 Mr Dean presented him with a cheque and a book containing the signatures
of 275 subscribers. Mr Dean referred
to Mr Rooke's 43 years with the Bank, thirty-four of them at Liverpool
Overseas, the last thirteen as Accountant. He went on to say that the
team-work and efficiency of the branch owed much to Mr Rooke's personality
and organising ability. To many in the Bank, especially in overseas circles,
he was an 'institution' who commanded respect and awe. Those who worked with
him, however, knew he could also be kind, sympathetic and a help in time of
trouble. In reply Mr Rooke spoke of the
great spirit of co-operation he always had received from the staff, making
his job as Accountant of such a big office so much easier to carry out. In a
lighter vein he narrated some anecdotes of the past. The staff and past colleagues were later entertained to
tea and in the evening Mr Rooke, with his wife, daughter and two sons, were
hosts to some 200 of their friends at a cocktail party at Head Office which
went with all the gusto associated with Liverpool Overseas. Mr Rooke had previously lunched at Head Office with Mr
Maxwell and members of the General Management.
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