TWO natives of Arkengarthdale born 85 years apart help launch the dale's millennium project tomorrow.

Mr Enoch Atkinson, aged 87, and his two-year-old granddaughter, Samantha, are guests of honour at the unveiling of a book which pieces together the history of 140 properties in the dale. They were chosen because Mr Atkinson is the oldest man in Arkengarthdale and Samantha is the youngest child born there.

An archive group was set up when it was decided to mark the millennium with a record of the dalespeople's lives, homes, memories, community and surroundings to allow future generations to learn how people lived at the turn of the 21st century.

Collection of information for the book, A Moment in Time, began 18 months ago with photographs of properties and their owners, who were interviewed to piece together a history of almost every home, church and business in the dale.

Residents also wrote chapters on a range of subjects including local history, farming, the church and chapel, flowers, filming, the school and the sports association.

Funding came from the Awards for All millennium fund and Richmondshire district council and the project was pulled together by Mr Ray Wright and Mr Graham White.

The launch takes place at Arkengarthdale Methodist chapel, where an exhibition of pictures, slides, scrap books, maps and computer displays is open to all from 10am to 5pm. The book is launched officially by Coun Clark Stones, parish council chairman, at 11am.

Those who have ordered books from the 850-copy print run may collect them during the day and copies will be on sale at £12.95. Surplus proceeds from sales will be ploughed into community projects in the dale.

Mr Atkinson, who travels from his Reeth home to Low Faggergill farm at Whaw daily to help his son, Gary, thought the book was an interesting project.

Mr White said Mr Atkinson, who often arrived at the farm before the family was up and, during lambing time, still put in 12-hour shifts, was typical of the sort of dales-born resident the book aimed to record for posterity.

"There are some wonderful people, many of them quite elderly now, whose memories would have been lost if someone hadn't collected and published them," he said.

Sound recordings of interviews with dales residents have also been made and will be included on a CD rom due to take the project a stage further next year.

l A Moment in Time (ISBN 0953921506) is also available from Mrs Ann Wright, Mill Intake, Arkengarthdale, Richmond, North Yorkshire DL11 6ES, tel 01748 884652.