NORTHWICH has been home to some hugely interesting characters over the years.

One of those characters who you may or may not remember is Arthur Brunner, who lived in the town with his family between 1973 and 1977.

They emigrated to Northwich from Switzerland and enjoyed a happy four years living in Cheshire.

Recently, he has been ‘surfing the net’ for memories of Northwich, and wanted to share with us his experiences of his time here.

He said: “In the middle of the town on the high street was beautiful black and white half-timbered houses, which makes an English town look so historic and likable.

“This is why we - my wife Vreny and our children Andreas, Rosita and Patrick (still in Vreny’s belly)- emigrated to England - to see other things, to speak a different language, to meet other people and to experience other customs.

“Several times, we walked pass this half-timbered house and suddenly it catches our eye.

“The name Brunner is carved into the oak beam above the heavy double door entrance, and one can read there in large letters ‘Brunner Public Library and Salt Museum AD 1909’.

“Of course, the name immediately catches the eye as it was very special for us.

“We emigrated to England, a distance of 1225 km from Bremgarten, to a different culture where everybody’s name is Smith or Jones or so.

“Nobody is called Brunner in England, but just in this town where we came to live.

“After telling this story to our English neighbours and friends they said yes, there is also a Brunner House, a Brunner Crescent and even a Brunner statue.

“I wanted to know the origin of this Brunner.”

Arthur went on to research John Brunner, and was pleased to discover similarities between the industrialist and himself.

“John was the son of a teacher who emigrated from Switzerland to England and he was the founder of the big chemical company Brunner-Mond.

“Of course, this was a very special story for us which we told on every occasion to everybody.

“Our boss said the whole area around Northwich has rock salt in the underground and that there are huge salt mines.

“I was invited to visit the Brunner salt mines with my boss, as just the right name sometimes brings you luck.

“The visit to the salt mines was very interesting and thrilling nearly thousand feet in the underground.”