Thornton's Bookshop: Our History

Thornton's Bookshop
( W A & J S Meeuws )
( ABA, BA, ILAB )
Established in 1835

Member of the ABA since 1907

the previous generations

Thornton's was established in 1835 by Joseph Thornton, with a cash capital of only £ 250! By 1870, the bookshop was able to move into the historic premises at No. 11 Broad Street, and in 1913 the shop was expanded to occupy most of No. 12 Broad Street. In 1983 the bookshop was saved from bankruptcy by the Meeuws family. In May 2003 the old bookshop, complete with ghost, moved to other premises on Boars Hill / Oxford and now trades from Faringdon via mailorder and internet.

The Broad street premises were re-opened as

The Buttery

in December 2003, alas without books....In 2019 the shop was rebranded as The Shop of Secrets

and in 2022 The Oxford Outlet Store

I hope you enjoy the Thornton's Web Site, I have now more or less retired and only keep a very small stock in our barn. I would always be happy to help you find a book or with the sale of your library or individual rare books. In January 2019 I received the ABA's badge << 50 years a bookseller>> In fact it will be 58 years next April since I entered Martinus Nijhoff's marble steps to apply for my first job in the booktrade. My colleague at the time Bob Jongschaap, has written a history of Martinus Nijhoff . In 2017 he already published an article about the history and decline of this famous Dutch bookshop HERE

On the steps of the former bookshop Martinus Nijhoff in 2006

Joseph Thornton opened his bookshop in 1835 and among its famous customers have been

JRR Tolkien, Iris Murdoch, Michael Palin and Aung San Suu Kyi.

Here are a few more names and their photographs.