An Australian grandmother is to stride out this weekend in an attempt to match the achievement of a distant Bradford ancestor who walked 1,000 miles in 1,000 hours at Laisterdyke.

Val Moran was inspired by the story of Emma Sharp's legendary 1864 feat to use it to raise funds for Sids for Kids, a charity which supports families who have suffered stillbirth or the sudden death of a child.

The mother of three will be walking around a 2.5km circuit in Lennox Gardens, Yarralumla, Canberra, in remembrance of her own child, Suzanne, who died in infancy.

She will be going ahead with the attempt despite the death last month of her husband Peter in a glider accident.

"Peter had been heavily involved in preparations and publicity for the walk, and so Val is going ahead, feeling he would surely have wished it," said Gina Bridgeland, editor of Laisterdyke Local History Group, who has been liaising with Mrs Moran about the details of her ancestor's walk.

The attempt will start on Sunday. Mrs Moran hopes to complete the distance on Sunday, November 17.

By coincidence, it was news of an Australian woman's failure to walk 1,000 miles within the allotted 1,000-hour time limit that prompted Emma Sharp to undertake her own attempt.

She persuaded Alfred Hardy, landlord of the Quarry Gap Hotel at Laisterdyke, to lay out a fenced-off circular course on the pub's sports ground 120 yards long. The deal was that spectators would be charged for admission and Emma would receive a proportion of the gate money.

On September 17, dressed in men's clothes and carrying a stout cane, she set off on the first of 14,600 laps, walking two miles at a time and after every two hours allowing herself a 90-minute break for food and rest.

As the walk progressed, a lot of money was bet on its outcome and ruthless tactics were employed to try to influence it. It was reported that spectators tried to trip Emma up during her night walking and an attempt to dope her food was thwarted.

As the walk reached its final stages the police were called in to protect her. A man with a loaded musket walked in front of her and she herself carried a pistol.

Full details of Val's attempt can be found on www.1000milewalk.org.au