I'VE lived in Garstang all my life, and been interested in its history for much of that time.
I attended Garstang County Primary School and Garstang High School before doing A-levels at Blackpool Sixth Form College.
I graduated in 2002 from the University of Bradford with a BSc in Optometry, and now work as an optometrist in Lancaster.
For around 15 years, I have been collecting old postcards of the Garstang area.
The first postcards came from an old album belonging to my grandmother, which contained a few local cards.
I was also inspired to collect postcards by the excellent books produced in the 1990s by Albert Clayton of St Michael's-on-Wyre, and hoped one day to find examples of some of the postcards they contained.
Most of the postcards in my collection have come from fairs and, although I have managed to build up a good collection over the years, it is now becoming increasingly difficult to find good postcards from the Edwardian era.
I 've thought about the possibility of writing a book on the history of Garstang for a few years, but began researching and writing it in earnest early last year. I wanted to write a book that brought old Garstang to life, in as accurate and interesting a way as possible.
I decided to create a tour of old Garstang using my best postcards, many of which have never been published before.
I hope the book will help preserve these images for future generations. I've found it fascinating finding out about long-forgotten customs and events in Garstang's past, which I have written about in captions that accompany the postcards.
I've referenced all the information, so people who are interested can find out more by going back to the original sources.
Newspapers from the 19th century have provided an important source of information, and these can now be viewed on-line via the Lancashire Library website.
It has been interesting consulting documents in the Lancashire Record Office too, including the records of the Corporation of Garstang and the catalogue for the sale of the Garstang Estate.
I also thought people would find it interesting to read about some of the photographers who were the first to record what Garstang looked like.
It seems such a shame that open spaces such at the Royal Oak Field (which stretched from St Thomas's Church to the river and was used for many local events) have not been preserved for people to enjoy today, but at least they have been recorded by these early photographers.
Carnegie Publishing have done an excellent job typesetting my book, and their high-definition scans of my postcards ensure people will be able to see a lot of detail in the images.
The book has taken a long time to write. Often working for a few hours only resulted in a couple of lines of text!
l Garstang: A pictorial history, by John Askew (Pub: Carnegie/Palatine of Lancaster £8.95) will be launched at The Corner Bookshop tomorrow, Thursday, October 22) from 10 to noon, and The Courier has several copies to give away. To win a copy answer this question: What is the name of Garstang's castle?
Send your name, address, and daytime telephone number together with the answer on a postcard or sealed envelope marked 'History book' contest to Garstang Courier, 7 Pringle Court, Park Hill Road, Garstang, PR3 1LN by noon on Friday, October 30.