A BOOK exploring the industrial history of the Derwent Valley is hot off the press.

Written by historian Hylton Marrs, the book takes the reader from the foot of Gibralter Rock, where the two streams meet to form the Derwent, to the Tyne River.

Mr Marrs, who spent three years researching the book, said: "The only sign of industry today is the reclamation of the Derwenthaugh Coke Works and a few small engineering units in Hamsterley."

Through the course of its history, the valley has bustled with a variety of activities, including lead mining, coal mining and sword-making.

Lead has been mined in the upper reaches of the valley since Roman times.

The book talks about Shotley Mills and of the fines imposed on anyone who dug millstones out of the river bed without permission.

One larger village, Shotley Bridge, was famous for its sword-making, with Germans setting up shop in 1687 to supply superior quality blades - produced until the 1840s. The book also gives a full account of the impact of coal mining on the Derwent Valley.

The book, Mr Marrs' fifth, was written in tribute to his wife, Betty, who died of cancer aged 76, in October last year.

All money raised by the book, priced £4.60, will go to Willow Burn Hospice, in Lanchester.

The book, Gibralter to the Tyne: A Journey through the Industrial History of the Derwent Valley, is available at selected stores, the hospice, and from Mr Marrs on 01207-234832.