Sept 2006  Firstly let me congratulate you for the tremendous job you have done to create the CBC website, it is just so good…………..Unbelievably so.
Of course it should be considered formal reading by every member of the old CBC Bank.    Once again………..my hearty congrats.
I have noted that against Narooma Branch you have shown that it was an agency from Moruya Branch and of course that is correct, however, it eventually became a full time branch.   I know something of this ‘cause I was Manager there from 1971 to 1972.  I know that I have plenty of photographs of Narooma Branch – slides- and one of my eventual jobs is to organize all of ‘em into this darned machine and then put them onto discs.  When I do this of course I will select the most pertinent and send them to you……………provided that you live long enough?

Gloria and I sold our Wagga Wagga home of some 20 odd years in 2004 and moved into a new retirement village where we have been since.  We have 3 bedrooms, a combined lounge/dining room, kitchen, sunroom, patio, two bathrooms and a double garage.

All who have known me during my 40 odd years in the Bank will no doubt remember that I have been a woodworker since I married my beautiful wife, well…………..Gloria gets her car into one garage, however, my Brumby has to stay out in the cold ‘cause the other garage is my workshop and I was able to get all my machinery, tools etc., into it.  Accordingly I am still a “woodbutcher” despite the fact that I have made all the furniture (and then some) which we use, also that which the children use, their children use and many friends and their children use.  Life goes on, but, I no longer have to put out the garbage containers, mow the lawns, cut the edges etc., etc., 
Once again my heartiest congratulations.       John.
 

Friday, February 17, 2006

It seems that Belmont NSW Branch has been omitted from the list of NSW Branches!      Now inserted, Ed.

I opened Belmont Branch in January, 1961 and was there for about 8 years.

Prior to opening Belmont I was Accountant at Young NSW Branch and both our daughters were born at Young.

Naturally when passing through Sydney I reported to Head Office and met the then Northern Inspector.

Towards the end of our discussion I asked what instructions he had for me.

He answered “No instructions, just go and open a Branch there”.

Before Belmont Branch opened we had no representation between Gosford and Hamilton, Newcastle so it was rather an interesting place to open a branch, because when meeting people at social occasions and asked where I worked the answer being CBC Bank, the rejoinder was invariably “never heard of it”.

The Belmont building was originally a cottage and then it became a Fish and Chip shop. The cooking stoves etc., were just boarded up with Masonite and we used that room as a staff room.

What was probably once a lounge room became the work area with 2 large safes, the accountant had his own area (where at one time Richard Nott kept the seat warm) and next to that was my office to the south of the building facing west to the street. The banking chamber was open to the street with folding doors to the footpath.

It would have been heaven for bank robbers!

The other rooms at the rear of the building were used as stationery room, others as storerooms, the old bathroom became the ladies toilet, and another as men’s toilet and at the rear of the block was the manager’s garage.