 Starting in 1591, the firm that became R. Durtnell & Sons Limited had been handed down from father to son as a private company for thirteen generations.It was claimed to be the oldest building firm in Britain.According to Dun & Bradstreet, the business information provider, at the time it ceased trading it was "the third oldest company in the UK still in operation" – there were only two older companies in any sector in Britain with a continuous existence