Honour for family of renowned Todmorden physicist

The Cockcroft name is well-known in the town, with the family having been a large textile employer.

READ: Funding bid for Todmorden Town Hall improvements turned downThree generations, Keith Cockcroft, Lionel Cockcroft and his son, Peter Cockcroft have all taken on the role of Mayor of Todmorden over time, with the latter now serving as a member of the town hall’s working group.

Sir John Cockcroft was its most famous bearer having been jointly awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1951 for his work with Ernest Walton on splitting the atom.

Volunteer Peter Cockcroft and his wife Susan attended the naming ceremony at the town hall after Calderdale Council decided to honour the family’s contribution to the area.

Calderdale Council’s cabinet member for Communities and Neighbourhood Services, Coun Susan Press, said: “The Cockcroft family is well known and respected in Todmorden and its family members have contributed so much over the years.

“It’s fitting that one of the rooms in the town hall has been named after a family who have spent so much time in the building, contributing to the rich history of our town.”