NEW BEGINNINGS
Yet all was not well. Foreign competition began to eat away at the viability of British producers, and by the late 1960s the writing was on the wall for Thornbers. In 1972 the business was sold to Pentos holdings. However, Cyril Thornber managed to keep two poultry farms and his breeding stock. Cyril and his wife Dorothy moved from the family home Rose Mount to a bungalow, creating a spectacular garden there.
In 1991 Cyril passed away quietly in his armchair having spent a busy day negotiating with Ministry of Agriculture officials. Following Cyril’s death the family decided to discontinue with poultry altogether. A difficult decision after 84 years, but a necessary one. During the last twenty years Cyril’s son, Ralph Thornber, having recognised the need locally for business premises to rent, has been instrumental in turning the company’s under-used properties into units to let.
The company bought back the Hoo Hole Works, its former poultry equipment factory, and then Square Works in Mytholmroyd, its former office and joinery division. This was renamed Orchard Business Park. Once those and other properties were occupied, Ralph turned his attention to the two poultry farms at Dean Hey and Top Land. Today there is an impressive entrance to Dean Hey and Top Land Country Business Parks on Cragg Road Mytholmroyd. They provide an ideal working environment with modern facilities in a peaceful and picturesque setting but with access to all amenities, lots of parking and 24-hour security.
The ‘Ark’ Day Nursery, the brain-child of Ralph’s daughter, is one of the most successful in the North. It sits happily alongside several other businesses, housed in state of the art offices in the former poultry buildings at Dean Hey. Just along the road Top Land Country Business Park is home to some 18 businesses varying from a manufacturer of prayer mats to a gym.
Today Ralph Thornber is responsible for day-to-day management of Thornber properties. He takes great pride in the fact that the company is one of the major providers of commercial property for rent in the Upper Calder Valley, supplying premises for businesses employing over a 1,000 people.
Thornbers is still a family business. Ralph and his sisters are Directors of the Company. Their mother, Dorothy, still keeps an eye on what’s happening from the bungalow at Dean Hey.
Cyril Thornber would be proud to see how his and his father’s legacy has flourished. With the fourth generation of the family now starting to become involved, and a fifth generation growing up in and around Mytholmroyd, the Thornber name looks set to remain one to remember for many years yet to come.
Copyright True North Books Limited © 2008 extract from "Halifax and Calder Valley Memories".
Click a thumbnail to enlarge the image
