11-391 Jarrow Ormonde Street

Of the two Jarrow Branches that are passed to Martins Bank through the 1914 amalgamation of the Bank of Liverpool with the North Eastern Banking Company, only the office at 68 Ellison Street survives up to the merger with Barclays in 1969, and continue to serve customers until 2012. Ormonde Street is closed in 1930.

In Service: 1877 until 1930

Images © Geographia (and Successors) 1968, Barclays 1925, BT 1929.

The Branch at 52 Ormonde Street is listed in Kelly’s Directory 1914 as including the Manager’s Private Residence. Martins’ office there is amongst those Branches to be closed in the first real consolidation of the Branch portfolio in 1930. This follows the rebuilding of 68 Lombard Street London, and the erection of the Bank’s lavish new Head Office at water Street in Liverpool, which require a careful look at assets in order to achieve.

We are grateful to Babs Ludbrook, who contacted the Archive about her Great Grandfather, Mr James William Chater (pictured, left). He was made Manager at Ormonde Street in 1877 when the branch was part of the banking company, Messrs Dale, Young and Co., South Shields.

Mr Chater worked for over forty years as Manager first in Ormonde Street, and later he managed both here and at Ellison Street up to and beyond the time that Dale Young and Co was merged with the North Eastern Bank.

Image (left) © Martins Bank Archive Collections – Kelly’s Directory of Durham 1902 courtesy of the University of Leicester Historical Directories Special Collection

J W Chater seated front row, left.

Image © Martins Bank Archive Collections

Fair use policy – Copyright Owner being sought

He was a well-known and highly respected figure amongst the business people of Jarrow, he held a number important treasurerships including Public Funds, and the Jarrow Ambulance Van scheme, of which he was a founder member. Babs has also kindly supplied us with this image of Jarrow’s first ambulance van (right). The photograph was taken in Ellison Street School Yard in Jarrow in 1912, which was situated directly opposite the Fire Station. It is thought that the same horses were used for the ambulance van as was for pulling the fire engine. We have been trying to find the original of this photograph, which in the form it was sent to us appears to have come from a book. If you can help us find and acknowledge the copyright owner, please do get in touch with Martins Bank Archive at the usual address – martinsbankarchive@btinternet.com .