HI-TEC meets history as old Preston goes digital.

The archives of the Harris Museum and Art Gallery are being put on to a computer database to enable people to go into the library and look up whatever they want from the town's history.

And a team of eager volunteers are currently bar coding and scanning all the photos of Preston past.

Louise Connell, keeper of social history at the Harris, who is responsible for organising and taking care of all the archives, explained: "Instead of people coming to me to see the collection, they can look at it on their own.

"Then they will come to me with their projects, for example, if they want to trace their family history."

The photos, about 5,000 of them, will all be kept in the Scanpak, and if people want a rough print of something, they will be able to copy them there and then. Larger prints will also be available on order.

The collection includes a few rare Daguerro types, positives on glass, dating from the 1850s, and some of the earliest prints from the 1860s.

Ann Dennison, local studies librarian who has been at the Harris for around 20 years, is looking forward to when people can go in any library and at the push of a switch, look at their favourite part of town as it was 100 years ago.

"They will be able to type in an area such as Fishergate, and it will bring up a screen full of photos of that area.

"It will be incredible when it is up and running."

The service, which is expected to be available in the Millennium, has been funded by the Harris Trustees which fund both the library and museum.

"Under the old terms of Edmund Harris' request, there is money available for Harris projects," said Louise.

If you have any photos of Preston past which you wish to go on this database, call Louise on (01772) 905406.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.