A DORCHESTER writer will shine a light on the tragic events of more than 200 years ago when more than 150 people died in a shipwreck off the Dorset coast.

The Halsewell was a huge East India Company Ship which was wrecked on the Purbeck coast in 1786.

Thanks to the efforts of local quarrymen a third of the crew was saved but 150 people drowned, including Captain Richard Peirce and his two teenage daughters, who were all going to India.

Philip Browne has just published a book on the subject, called The Unfortunate Captain Peirce and the Wreck of the Halsewell, and is due to give a talk at Dorset County Museum.

He hopes there will be a heritage project in 2016 to mark the bravery of the rescuers.

Mr Browne said: “It surprises me that such a tragic local event is not more widely known. I hope my book will put that right. I have spent four years researching the life of Captain Peirce up to that final voyage and have discovered a remarkable man with an extraordinary career.

“I think it is time to acknowledge the courage of the Purbeck quarrymen who rescued so many from the Halsewell.

“I intend to investigate the possibility of placing a stone seat or some other small monument near the wreck-site as a reminder of the disaster and the generosity of the local people.”

The Halsewell was bound for Madras, in India, and had only just set out from London when she was driven onto rocks off Purbeck due to a violent storm.

Just 74 people survived of 240 crew and passengers.

The talk at Dorset County Museum is called A Freezing Horror and takes place from 7.30pm on December 2. Admission is free.

There will also be book signings and new and secondhand books on Friday, December 4, in Station Road, Swanage, and on Saturday, December 5 at Waterstones on South Street in Dorchester.

Mr Browne’s book is published by Hobnob Press.