11-82-50 Maghull

This is Martins Bank’s shiny new Branch at Maghull pictured in its year of opening, 1938. As a standalone branch, Maghull operates a full banking service across the six day banking week, makes it through the merger with Barclays in 1969. The branch survives into the twenty-first century, celebrating its 75th Birthday in 2013, but is closed by Barclays in March 2014. The days of “a job for life” seem well and truly gone, but there are many examples elsewhere on this site of Martins Branch Managers whose careers have spanned several decades; it is not uncommon for some to have served the Bank for almost fifty years.

In service: 5 October 1938 – 7 March 2014

Branch Images © Barclays Ref: 0030-1778

In our feature below, we look at the retirement celebrations for Mr J H Thomas who is Manager at Maghull from 1955 to 1964 and has completed a total of forty-four years’ service with the bank…

1964 01 MBM.jpg 1955 to 1964 Mr J H Thomas Manager MBM-Sp64P56.jpg at the end of January Mr J. H. Thomas, Manager at Maghull since 1955, retired. Despite Mr Thomas's request that the occasion be a quiet one, some thirty colleagues, past and present, gathered at the branch on the evening before his official retirement to pay tribute and to wish him well. The presentation of a nest of occasional tables was made by Mr I. Buchanan (Liverpool District 1938 Maghull Exterior BGA Ref 30-1778 General Manager) who spoke of the loyal service given to the Bank by Mr Thomas over the past forty-four years, and of his successful nine years of management at Maghull branch.

A bouquet was handed to Mrs Thomas whom everyone was delighted to see and then Mr Thomas in a short but sincere speech thanked all those concerned for their kind thoughts and good wishes. He concluded by inviting everyone to adjourn to the banking hall where the counter had been transformed into a buffet table more than adequately laden for the celebration of such an occasion. Entering the Lancashire and Yorkshire Bank in 1920, Mr Thomas served at Old Trafford and Eastbank Street branches prior to the amalgamation. After three years at Birkdale branch he moved in 1932 to Linacre from which branch he entered H.M. Forces in 1942. After the war he spent nine years at Bootle branch before his appointment as Manager at Maghull in 1955.