Earby and District Local History Society will be commemorating the centenary of the outbreak of World War One this year.

The highlights will be a book and exhibition on the effects of World War One on Earby and its people.

“The Great War of 1914 to 1919 is now virtually out of living memory,” said society member Bob Abel. “However memory can be and is handed down through the generations of a family.

“Sometimes photographs, postcards, letters or even diaries of the period have survived.

“Most people will have a family member who was swept up in the events 100 years ago. Many will have an ancestor who didn’t return.”

To launch the commemoration year, the society will hold a coffee morning at New Road Community Centre next Saturday, January 25 from 10am to 2pm and is inviting people to bring along photographs, memorabilia, letters and diaries, which can shed light on that period in Earby’s history.

It is also planning to create a permanent World War One archive for future generations to use.