Accrington Web - Sir William Cocker

Quote:

Originally Posted by rtbarton (Post 606113)

Were Cocker's Chemicals and Riley's Chemicals connected in any way? My mother worked for Rileys in the war years, they apparently made war gasses. She sadly died aged 64, just after retiring in 1984. The main problem was respiritory, but to be fair she smoked heavily all her life.

I am a very new member to the site and have scrolled through most of the information and came across Sir William Cockers name. I worked for Sir William and his son Dr. Eric Cocker in the late sixties, 'no computers then, just a typewriter and a phone'. .....Sir William moved to a house called 'Dyke Nook' on Whalley Road, then later moved to huge bungalow in St Anne's. Cocker Chemicals and Riley's chemicals at that time had no links and as far as I know never did!! Cocker Chemicals were linked to a company in the USA call 'Florasynth' together they produced synthetic food flavourings, I would type and send letters to the USA and it could take 10 to 14 days for a reply to reach us, transatlantic calls were so expensive, so a 'telex' machine was installed in my office, it was the size of a baby grand piano. I sent the first message to the USA it took around an hour to receive it on the other side if the Atlantic.....emails weren't thought of for appx another 25 years. I left in July 1970 to have my first child.