The biggest muster of Metcalfes for almost 500 years is to gather in the Yorkshire Dales.

And among them will be retired teacher Peter Metcalfe and his wife, Mary, from Bradford, joining hundreds for a clan photograph.

He will be travelling to Hawes in Wensleydale, on Saturday, September 24, from his home in Willow Crescent, Wrose, to renew ancient blood ties with folk sharing one of the oldest names in Yorkshire.

It originated in Wensleydale but there are at least 600 in Bradford, a couple of hundred in Skipton and Keighley and plenty in Ilkley and Bingley.

And many of their ancestors will have been part of the 18th century exodus from the valley of people chasing jobs in places like Bradford, at the time of the industrial revolution.

Mr Metcalfe, 74, traces his roots back to 1777 and a James Metcalfe, a stonemason who died of cholera in Hawes in 1849.

But it was his grandfather, Michael, who established his Bradford link, arriving in the late 19th century to live with his uncle who had already moved to the city.

"He worked as an errand boy then trained as a dyer, living in Woodland Street, White Abbey," said Mr Metcalfe who worked a Calton Bolling College, Bradford, before retiring.

"When he married my grandmother Eliza, in 1901, they went to live in Salt Street, Manningham."

He credits his daughter, Andrea, for getting him interested in tracing his family tree after she bought him a compact disc about genealogy.

"I got hooked on it and eventually came across the Metcalfe Society and they helped me trace back to James Metcalfe living in Hawes in 1777," he added.

The society's celebrations will be the largest gathering of Metcalfes since 1415 and the battle of Agincourt when, legend has it, family members rode into the encounter on white horses.

As a reward, James Metcalfe was awarded land at Nappa in Wensleydale by Henry V where the fortified house still stands.

Diane Howarth, Metcalfe Society secretary, said the muster was the most important event in organisation's history.

"People are coming from all over the country as well as from as far as the USA, Australia and Canada," she said.

The events will include a tour of the Hawes area stopping at Metcalfe places of interest, a photograph of all the clad present and the blowing of a ceremonial horn at Bainbridge.

A special exhibition about the family history will also be on show at the Yorkshire Dales National park Authority Museum in Hawes.

Any Metcalfes interested in taking part should contact Lesley Longworth on 01482 342516.