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 The story of Martins Bank’s connection to Bournemouth
begins in 1925, when the Bank of Liverpool and Martins opens a branch at 128/130 CHRISTCHURCH OLD ROAD.
In 1934 Martins relocates to 49 Old Christchurch Road, and it is
this branch that survives the 1969 merger with Barclays and lasts until until
1975. In 1966 a short-lived self accounting sub-Branch opens at nearby BOSCOMBE, only to be closed again just before the merger with
Barclays.
The amazing iron doors of the
Bournemouth Branch are certainly a talking point, looking quite scary as you
sit filling out your cheque or paying-in slip in the banking hall! They gain a special mention including an
explanation of their provenance, in Martins Bank Magazine in 1966 in a
feature that includes many of the artworks that were commissioned by the Bank
with the aim of representing local character in Branches…
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In Service: 12 March 1934
to 14 February 1975
Copyright
holder not yet found – if this image is yours, please contact
Martins
Bank Archive by email - martinsbankarchive@btinternet.com
Branch Interiors ©
Barclays Ref
30/339
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At Bournemouth Branch
- A work by Sculptor Paul Fletcher, with two main themes:
 ‘LOCALITY’
is shown by use of sea shell forms played against one another in convex and concave
patterns. ‘SECURITY’ led to the idea of large bronze doors, partly reflecting
those of a vault, and partly the great doors of Romanesque Gothic churches
with their overtones of security and sanctuary. The shell forms are roughly composed as
warriors with obvious implication…
We are indebted to Martins colleague Mike Hardy for his
memories of Bournemouth Branch in the early 1960s, featured below. The personal recollections of staff are
what really help us to tell the story of Martins Bank, and we are always
pleased to receive them. If you would
like to tell us about your experience of Martins Bank, then please do get in
touch with us by email at the usual
address: martinsbankarchive@btinternet.com
Stoke the boiler and sleep by the
safe…
  I joined Martins
Bank in Bournemouth in 1959 as a raw 16-year-old straight from school. The
Manager was Harry Thompson who was just a year or so away from retirement – a
real old-fashioned, hands-on, Bank Manager and gentleman. The duties then of
an office junior would lead present day human resources and health and safety
departments to throw in the towell! Amongst ‘normal’office junior duties, I
had to keep the (coal fired) boiler going in winter, deliver (sometimes
valuable) packages around town, take high value packagess full of used bank
notes to the post office – often single handed. I was a readily available
target for a bank robber and on one occasion swung round and swiped a valued
customer who, jokingly, had said “hands-up” and poked an umbrella into my
back whilst I was carrying a package. The Manager, by then Harry Robinson,
heard of this and I was castigated for attacking a customer who later
explained the circumstances to Robinson but, typically for him, he never
apologised to me – I was too low a mortal. Robinson was the opposite of
Thompson. He left all the day to day business to his Pro-Manager and
concentrated on lunching customers and keeping as far away from the
branch and branch staff as possible;
not unpleasant just remote.
 When the branch
was having some building work done, it was deemed too insecure to leave the
premises unattended overnight so I was installed as the nightwatchmen and
slept on a camp-bed next to the strong room. Quite what I was meant to do in
the event of any attack and why an 18-year-old was considered to be good
security is a mystery. The Pro-Manager
in Bournemouth was someone of whom I regret I have only unpleasant memories;
he was a pedantic ‘Non-Commissioned Officer’
type, who concealed his lack of imagination and overall inefficiency
under a cloud of authority. He was more concerned with balancing the
post-book than anything to do with customer care or banking. He was
permanently miserable (I believe he had a non-existent home life) and I can’t
ever remember him smiling, although he might have done when the post-book
balanced! After leaving Martins I twice ran across him but on both occasions,
he snubbed me. Despite his best efforts we did have some good times.
I
remember many of the staff with affection including David Rees, Freddie
Marsh, Mick Readey, Pat Veale and Sally Hantsch. Some of us went regulary to
see the football at Dean Court and the cricket at Dean Park but apart from
that there was very little socialising although Sally had a (very attractive)
Swiss cousin with whom I went to many Bournemouth Symphony concerts – that’s
another story! I met my wife (we have been married for 45 years) on the
‘local run’ in Bournemouth, she worked for Westminster, although, perhaps
heeding parental advice, none of our 4 children have gone into banking!
Text
© Martins Bank Archive Collection -
Mike Hardy 2011
Images
© Barclays Ref 0030-0339
For its Winter 1952 edition,
Martins Bank Magazine visits Bournemouth Branch and meets the staff and of
course the Manager, Mr Allison. Just
two years later, Mr Allison features in the Magazine once more, this time on
the occasion of his retirement, as you will see further down this page. In 1952, the first impression of
Bournemouth seems to be that our branch is situated in…
“A street
of teeming activity”…
  Our
Bournemouth office is in a street of teeming activity and the normal staff of
ten sometimes have their work cut out to finish at a respectable hour. The
place seems to have more hotels (and modern ones, too) to the square mile
than any other place we have visited and one wonders how they can all keep
going, yet some of them are open all the year round and the town is
exceedingly busy, with many big shops.
Mr. Allison has been at Bournemouth for 27
years and Manager for 25 of them.
During this time quite a distinguished bunch of our present managers
have served him as second men, which speaks well for the training they
received under him. Mr. Allison knew
Lawrence of Arabia in the days when Lawrence used to come in to 68 Lombard
Street, and had several interesting anecdotes to tell about this fascinating
and elusive personality. Mr. W. B. Mason is
Pro Manager. His first appointment was at Southampton in 1948 and he went to
Bournemouth last year.
 We
were very pleased to meet Olive King and Mary Harrison once again. They were
members of the Bank's first Continental holiday party in 1949 and we had not
seen them since. Olive, who has been in the Bank since 1945, is a Cert.
A.I.E. and A.C.C.S. and is also a member of the Council of the Bournemouth
Centre of the Institute of Bankers, a record which would not disgrace a man,
never mind a girl. She is engaged to be married to Mr. F. C. Marsh, of our
Bournemouth staff. Good luck to them both. Few of our branches
are really solemn places, but some are so outstandingly happy in the spirit
which pervades them that one is instantly conscious of it. Bournemouth is one of these and it is
always a tribute to the control when it is so. On the afternoon of Saturday, August 30th, we motored over to Ringwood
to have tea with Mr. and Mrs. Allison in their home on the edge of the New
Forest. Many of our managers have delightful homes and it is pleasant to be
able to record from our observation that the setting against which many of
them do such good work is nearly always that of a beautiful home and a happy
background. Bournemouth has much to
recommend it, for it still has an air of quality in spite of much
vulgarisation and when one tires of the heat and bustle of a busy seaside
town there is easy escape to a quite incomparable hinterland.
  On the
eve of his retirement at the end of August, Mr. Allison invited his staff to
a farewell cocktail party at his charming home at Ringwood, Hants. A presentation set of Shakespeare's works and a tobacco
jar were given on behalf of past and present colleagues, by Mr. J. R.
Branscombe, retired Joint Manager of Cocks Biddulph branch and the first
Manager of Bournemouth branch, who, in a witty speech, recalled the opening
days of the branch when he and Mr. Allison, then second-in-command, appeared
to have plenty of time on their hands. Miss
Muriel Harrison, the senior lady of the Bournemouth staff, then presented
Mrs. Allison with a cut glass vase, a surprise gift which obviously pleased
both her and Mr. Allison immensely. Mr.
Allison expressed his appreciation of the gifts and thanked his staff for
their loyalty and co-operation and Mrs. Allison, also, made a happy little
speech. Among those present in addition to
the Bournemouth staff and their wives were Mr. and Mrs. Ritchie, Mr. Silcock
and Mr. Ison from Lilliput, Mr. Parker from Southampton, Mr. W. A. Catford
from London, and about ten of Mr. Allison's oldest personal friends and
customers. Mr. Allison commenced his career
in 1912 in the North-Eastern District and was transferred to the London
District in 1920. He went to Bournemouth for the opening of the branch in
1925 and was appointed Manager two years later. He served with H.M. Forces
during the Second World War from 1940 to 1943.
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