11-29-00 Ashington

Martins Bank’s Branch at Ashington is one of the original branches of the North Eastern Banking Company Limited, opened by them in 1893. This is twenty-one years before the North Eastern Bank merges with the Bank of Liverpool, an amalgamation that provides Martins Bank with a comprehensive coverage of the North East. Barclays Group Archives tell us that by 1929 the premises at Market Place are deemed by the directors of Martins Bank to be “not suitable, and some distance from the trading centre of the town”. A new branch is constructed at a former shop premises at 9 STATION ROAD , a branch that remains open until 16 July 2021.

It was common for the Bank to take out an advertisement in the local press when a branch was opened, moved or closed. Often the advertising would feature the Bank’s Coat of Arms and other generic content that mentioned one or more of the Bank’s services. In the case of Ashington’s move to Station Road, we have only been able to find this short piece written in the form of a news article, which may have been paid for jointly by the Bank, and the architects whose company name and building styles have prominence within the prose.