Ernest Thorpe Transport: Sadness as famous trucking company near Sheffield closes after 101 years

Ernest Thorpe Transport was founded in 1921 by Ernest Thorpe, who had one vehicle, and it rapidly grew from those humble beginnings, moving to a large site in Thurgoland as its green-liveried vehicles became a familiar sight across South Yorkshire and well beyond. Known for its slogan ‘The Service That Satisfies’, the business had carried steel in and out of Stocksbridge, close to where it was based, for many decades as it was passed down from generation to generation.

But its proud history has come to an end after it was decided at a company meeting last month to voluntarily wind up the firm and appoint Chamberlain & Co as liquidators. According to documents on the Companies House website, the business had estimated assets available at the time of closure totalling £357,528, including £100,000 worth of vehicles and equipment. But its liabilites included £415,951 in redundancy packages and payment in lieu of notice for 20 employees, and its estimated deficiency regarding creditors was £486,530.

News of its closure has been met with great sadness on social media, with many people taking to a Facebook group called ‘The Service That Satisfies’ to share their fond memories from over the years.

Pete Young, who created the group, which has more than 600 followers, said: “It’s just a sad state of affairs that so many traditional firms like this are dying out now and being replaced by faceless corporations. It must have been an incredibly hard decision for the family to take. I started my trucking career with Ernest Thorpe. Back then I didn’t have any experience but I’d been brought up in and around the steel industry in Stocksbridge and the family knew me because of my dad so they took me on and gave me the big chance I needed. You wouldn’t get an opportunity like that these days.

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“I have friends who had been working with Ernest Thorpe for more than 30 years and you don’t get that anymore. They were a really good family to work for. They had good hardworking values and were really fair with their employees.”