DESCENDANTS of Annie Mary Scarre are proud to have a photograph showing her in her cap and gown when she gained a university degree 99 years ago.

But they are now trying to find out if she made history as the first woman from the Barnard Castle area to graduate.

She was the daughter of William Horner Scarre, land agent to Monsignor Thomas Witham, a millionaire priest who owned Lartington Hall and its surrounding estate, near Barnard Castle, County Durham.

Miss Scarre went to Liverpool University, where she gained a BA degree in ancient and modern history in 1905. By that time, the hall and estate had been taken over by the Silvertop family of Ministeracres, in Northumberland.

Miss Scarre later gained an MA degree and became a teacher in Barnard Castle, Darlington and Sunderland. She was well into her 80s when she died in the 1960s.

Her niece, Rose Mary Berrie, who was brought up in Teesdale but now lives in Harrogate, said: "We think she was probably the first Teesdale woman to be awarded a degree, but would love to find out if this is the case. She was certainly one of the earliest and we have never heard of anyone before her.

"She was extremely clever and her father, who was my grandfather, was really proud of her."

Miss Scarre, who never married, ran the Girl Guides in Barnard Castle during the First World War.

After retiring, she lived in Norway for a number of years.