Farewell, Thornton's of Oxford

Thornton's (its site history) is no longer a  brick-and-mortar bookshop since January 1, 2003. It has disappeared into the cybersphere (cyberia?). The building at 11, Broad Street now houses a cafe.

When I was last at Oxford in November 2001, Thornton's, a classic English secondhand and antiquarian bookshop in operation since 1835, was still thriving, apparently.  I had not then realized that it had faced bankruptcy, and been sold by the Thornton family in 1983.

Thornton has nourished me intellectually, and exercised a decisive influence on my intellectual life. It deserves to be remembered with affection and gratitude.

The Turl Cash, Thornton's, and my lost youth

My intellectual development has been greatly influenced by Oxford’s venerable bookshops. I have particularly fond memories of The Turl Cash, Thornton's, and Blackwell's (of course). I am gratified to discover an old essay, "Oxford Bookshops" by William Ridler, of July 1963, when the original Parker's building had been demolished, and the new one (that I knew in 1974) was yet only on the drawing board. The essay has a particularly rare (I think) and delightful description of The Turl Cash.

ps. Exeter College demolished the old Parker’s bookshop at Nos. 26–27, Broad Street, Oxford and built its Thomas Wood Building (1964) on the corner of the Broad and the Turl. (source) The new building housed Parker's at the old spot from 1964 until c. 1993 when Blackwell's Art and Poster Shop moved in.