THE Northern Echo has helped staff at a North-East museum date precisely when the building's roof was constructed.

A 130-year-old copy of The Northern Echo has been found wedged between roof tiles on the Bowes Museum in Barnard Castle, County Durham.

However, staff are puzzling over whether the paper was left there deliberately.

The chance discovery was made by a worker restoring the museum's roof as part of a multi-million pound restoration scheme.

The paper which is dated January 31, 1876, was left there exactly 130 years ago this month.

An old photograph of the museum in the latter stages of completion is dated as spring 1876.

Dr Howard Coutts from the museum, said: "We don't know if it was put there deliberately for people to find in the future, or whether it was just a man who had finished his lunch and put it there to stop the tiles rattling.

"It does seem a very literate thing for a worker on the roof to be reading.

"They did use to have topping-off ceremonies which was supposed to be done by John Bowes, but he died before the museum was finished."

The top stories that day included a jewellery robbery in Tudhoe Grange where £232 of jewellery was stolen, about £20,000 today.

The paper, which cost one-halfpenny, also contained adverts for Bentick's Baking Powder, entrance exams for Gainford School and a comment on the Egyptian Policy.

The museum will remain open as normal while work on the roof is being carried out.

Published: 14/01/2006