A GUARD of honour was in place to mark the funeral of a retired firefighter whose family protected his home town for almost a century.

Harry Brown followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather when he signed up as a fireman to serve Darlington in around 1950.

The 91-year-old, who retired from the service in 1980, remained an active member of the community with his roles with Darlington Cricket Club, the football club when it was based at Feethams and the quoits club.

His son David Waterfall-Brown, who served as a police officer with Durham Constabulary, said it was a 'great tribute' to his father to have a guard of honour for his funeral.

He said: "We are so proud that he is still fondly remembered almost 40 years after he retired and it was such an honour that his coffin will be carried in by uniformed officers.

"I don't think there will have been a family with three generations working firefighters across a period of around 100 years."

Harry, who also doubled up as an ambulance driver, was the third generation of his family to serve as a firefighter for County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service (CDDFR) following his father John George Brown and his grandfather John Duncan Brown.

Representatives of the CDDFR were also at the funeral to pay their respects.

The father-of-two, who was also a grandfather-to-six, great-grandfather-to-seven and uncle to Amanda and Adrian, was described as a quiet man who just went about his business without any fuss.

Mr Waterfall-Brown added: "We found loads of old photographs in the loft when dad moved – they are a real glimpse into the history of Darlington's fire service.

"We found pictures of my dad, his dad and his grandfather all working as firefighters – it was like a treasure trove of memories."

Among the coffin bearers was London Fire Brigade firefighter Neil Green, who is married to one of Mr Brown's granddaughters.

Donations, in lieu of flowers, were made to the Fire Fighters Charity.