Historians have prized open a treasure trove of camera club images to reveal a history of North-West England over the past 100 years.

Plucked from the archives of the Lancashire and Cheshire photographic Union the pictures have gone on show at the Museum of Lancashire in Preston where they will be exhibited until 8 April.

?The Lancashire and Cheshire Photographic Union was founded in 1905,? said John McGoldrick, the museum?s curator of social history. ?Its existence for 100 years is testimony to the huge interest in photography in the region.?

The gems include an 1858 photograph entitled ?The Bobbin Mill, Hurst Green? (pictured) captured by renowned photographer Roger Fenton whose family are believed to have owned many properties in Lancashire.

The show, called ?The First Hundred Years? is at the Museum of Lancashire, Stanley Street, Preston, Lancashire.

The museum is open Mon-Wed, Fri and Sat 10.30am-5pm. For details call 01772 534 075.

The exhibition is also due to go on tour around the North-West until 2008.

Picture credit: Roger Fenton