A WAR exhibition which tells the stories of local soldiers who fought and died in the First and Second World Wars has been hailed a success by museum organisers.

Our Brothers Died exhibition has had 6,000 visitors through Bolton Museum's doors since it opened in November.

The exhibition portrays the real life stories of 38 soldiers from Bolton who lost their lives in both major conflicts from the 20th century.

The museum, on Le Mans Crescent, has displayed its complete collection of war memorials to the public for the first time.

The exhibition also tells the story of when war came to Bolton during the First World War when the town was attacked by a Zeppelin in 1916, killing 13 people.

It features First World War recruitment posters, which showed how many men were encouraged to join the forces. The Dead Man's Penny, commemorative plaque issued to families of the dead, and a selection of personal items and letters from the trenches were also featured.

There are computers in the gallery, which allowed visitors to trace the wartime service of their own relatives.

Sean Baggaley, who helped organise the exhibition, said the real life profiles of local soldiers has been a big hit with museum-goers.

Mr Baggaley, who is the Keeper of Local History at Bolton Museum, said: "I had high hopes that the exhibition would be successful, and my expectations have been met. It has been the most focused exhibition on local history. We have received some positive feedback from local people and a lot more items have been loaned to us.

"Some of the stories which have come from the exhibition have been really heartening. A man saw a profile of his grandfather at the exhibition and a photograph of him for the first time. I spoke to somebody who witnessed the actual Zeppelin attack, and remembers it coming over the town. The success of the exhibition shows that war memorials are terribly important to people today."

Mr Baggaley said that a similar exhibition was planned for next year although on a smaller scale.

The free exhibition will run until January 10, and is open from 10am until 4pm.