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Image © Martins Bank Archive Collections The Craven Bank opens a sub-branch to Skipton at
Barnoldswick on 7 December 1876, and it is fair to say that these are indeed
small beginnings for a branch that will remain open well into the
twenty-first Century. The majority of Martins Bank’s branches in the Craven
District are to be found in the County of North Yorkshire. |
In Service: 7 December 1876 (rebuilt
1969) and closed 14 April 2023 Image © 1970 Barclays Ref 0030-0099 |
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Whilst Barnoldswick
fits this category, it is one of many towns whose POSTAL
address puts it into Lancashire! In
1880, when it is decided to incorporate
the Craven Bank, Barnoldswick is still a sub branch to Skipton. By the 1960s however, it is a branch in its
own right, and grows to the point where Martins can take full advantage of
the redevelopment of Church Street, and the chance to rebuild. With the merger on the cards, the branch is
built and fitted out to Barclays’ specifications, and whilst no images
can currently be obtained of the old Martins Branch, our good friends at
Barclays have tracked down some images of the new building from the beginning
of the 1970s. The Branch is still open
today… Our Barnoldswick features look
at the retirements of two long serving members of the staff– Jessie
Watkinson, who we were saddened to hear died in the early Summer of 2013, and
first of all Mr W Whittaker, (Manager of Barnoldswick for sixteen years) who
retires in 1959 after a career spanning 34 years in the bank. |
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On the occasion of the retirement of Mr.
W. Whittaker, Manager at Barnoldswick, he and Mrs. Whittaker invited a number
of old colleagues to an evening party at the Crown Hotel, Colne. Earlier in
the day his staff at Barnoldswick had made him a presentation of a brief
case. At the evening proceedings which were attended by many of the managers
of the Craven District Mr. E. L. Fielden (Manager, Burnley), made a happy
little speech in the course of which he referred to his long association with
Mr. Whittaker and conveyed the good wishes of everyone to Mr. and Mrs.
Whittaker. In replying, Mr.
Whittaker made special reference to the support and loyalty he had always
received from his second man, Mr. Openshaw, and his staff. |
Image © 1970 Barclays Ref 0030-0099 |
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A
man of many interests, Mr. Whittaker is a keen violinist and a member of the
Colne Orchestral Society, while for some years he has been Chairman of the
Barnoldswick National Savings Committee. His work received wider recognition
in his appointment as Vice Chairman of the West Riding Constituency and a
Deputy Assembly member of the Yorkshire Region. During the last war he was
Commanding Officer, with the rank of Major, of the local Home Guard. During
the First World War he served for four years in the R.A.M.C. Mr. Whittaker entered the Bank in 1919 after serving with
H.M. Forces for four years. He served for varying periods at Chester, Water
Street, Burnley and Bingley before his first appointment as Pro Manager at
Barnoldswick in 1940. He became Manager there in 1943. Forty-Four
Happy Years – of RETIREMENT! |
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Miss Jessie Watkinson retired from Barnoldswick branch at the end of July after over 28 years' service.
She entered the Bank at Skipton in 1941 and moved
to Barnoldswick in 1948. On her last day
at the office Mr F. H. Makin, deputising for
the Manager who was on holiday, presented
Miss Watkinson with a silver bracelet on behalf
of her past and present colleagues. Later in the evening the staff were entertained at the Watkinson
home where various brews of home-made wines were
consumed. Jessie Watkinson is listed in the final batch of retirement write-ups in
the last full edition of Martins Bank Magazine, Autumn 1969. She is a much loved member of staff, and the esteem in which she is held
by her colleagues is reflected in a
letter, written to Jessie by Mr Jennings, Joint general Manager of the
Bank at the end of July 1969… |
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The wish for “many happy years to come”, comes true - with Jessie
spending more than one and a half times as long a Bank pensioner as she was
an employee! With special thanks
to David Baxter for permission to reproduce items
from Jessie’s estate. |
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