AN ARNSIDE man aged 104 has passed away peacefully after a short illness.

Father of two Frank Debenham Trudgill had lived in the village since retiring from his role as a chief valuation officer in Ulverston in 1965.

Mr Trudgill was the youngest and the last surviving of seven children born to Frank and Isabella Trudgill of Nelson, Lancashire, and after leaving school he worked in a cotton mill while attending evening classes at the local technical college.

At 17, he gained qualifications to be able to work in local government at Nelson and in 1931, he married Vera Halsall.

Promotion took them to Leeds where there he was elected an associate of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and spent the latter part of his career at Ulverston before moving to Arnside. passed away at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary.

Mr Trudgill enjoyed many hobbies, including poetry, and conducted a number of male and mixed voice choirs, winning prizes at choral festivals around the country.

He also had a strong interest in archaeology, especially Roman, with an encyclopaedic knowledge of the archaeology of Hadrian's Wall.

He had a keen interest in Botany and his knowledge of trees was extensive; he made several contributions to the Tree Register of Britain's largest trees, and was an organic vegetable gardener long before it became as popular as it is today. In later life he had time to cultivate his interest in poetry.

He is survived by two sons and their wives, five grandchildren and four great grandchildren.