A BOOK left in dusty old box in a charity shop could shed light on a family's history.

The dark green book on the history of the Durham Light Infantry (DLI), was handed in to the Mayor's Charity Shop, in Darlington, last week.

It was among a pile of books and staff only realised its importance when they picked it up to price it.

Out fell a pile of old papers tucked inside the centre pages, among them important documents relating to the Cummings family, including four Freeman of Durham certificates.

One of them belonged to Joseph Cummings, who was made a Freeman in 1838, in the first full year of Queen Victoria's reign.

The other three certificates were awarded to William Charles Cummings in 1872, George Cummings in 1920 and George William Cummings in 1943. All are described as drapers and tailors.

Among the pile of papers were also some postcards, believed to belong to Sergeant George Cummings, who served in the Durham Light Infantry during the First World War.

The curator of the Durham Light Infantry Museum in Durham, Steve Shannon, said Sgt Cummings was probably a member of the Durham Pals brigade.

He said: "The Pals Brigades were part of Kitchener's new army and fought on the first day of the Battle of the Somme, so Sergeant Cummings could well have been one of the pals."

Staff at Darlington Borough Council, which runs the charity shop, are keen to trace surviving members of the family.

A spokesman said: "We get a real variety of things that people bring in for us to sell, but this is one of the most intriguing items to turn up in recent months. We are really keen to contact any family members, because it may well have been dropped in by someone who was completely unaware of what was inside the book."

Anyone with information can contact Darlington council on (01325) 388012.