A poppy trail will be unveiled in Dorchester as the county town commemorates the end of the First World War.

There will also be a beacon lighting at Salisbury Fields.

Residents interested in finding out a bit more about Dorchester’s history and the role of local townspeople in the First World War, are all invited to attend the free community event.

Entitled Homecoming the event will celebrate the returning of the troops following the end of the war and commemorate not just the nearly 300 servicemen and women associated with the town who died in the Great War, but also the widows and mothers who had to live with their grief.

This free event is taking place at the Corn Exchange, Dorchester, on Wednesday, November 7 from 10.30am to 4.30pm and has been organised by Dorchester Town Council, The Keep Military Museum, the Mill Street Housing Association and the Dorset History Centre as well as several other partners with the help of well-known local historian Brian Bates.

In the morning there will be performances from Manor Park school and St Osmund’s school as well as a wealth of displays and artefacts to look at and activities to participate in such as button making and conker fights – something for all ages to enjoy.

In the afternoon, there will be music from the Decadettes performing popular songs of the era and free refreshments will be served all day including Trench Stew, Nelson Cake and Camp Coffee.

There will also be a range of historical talks taking place every hour from 11am looking at how life was during the war, as well as stories of the local soldiers who never came home.

The day will also see the launch of Dorchester’s new Poppy Trail.

This explores the hidden history of the First World War in Dorchester. The Prisoner of War Camp here was one of the largest in the country and held over 4,000 prisoners at its height. There are few signs of it today, but by exploring the Poppy Trail you can discover where it was, where soldiers signed up for the war effort at the Dorchester Barracks and the Corn Exchange, the soldiers’ home in North Square and the War Memorial designed by Thomas Hardy.

Project organiser Kate Hebditch said: “I’d like to pay tribute to the extensive research already carried by Brian Bates and to our small team of enthusiastic volunteers who tracked down additional material and some fantastic photographs.

“One of our volunteers used her German language skills to find out about the designer and sculptor of the rare German War Memorial in Fordington Churchyard. After the War, the sculptor Josef Walter emigrated to America where he created a Second World War Memorial in New York.”

The Dorchester Remembrance Sunday Service will take place on the 11 November at the War Memorial at 11am.

The Town Council will also be taking part in Battle’s Over, an international commemoration marking 100 years since the guns fell silent.

At 7pm on Sunday, November 11 the beacon in Salisbury Fields will be lit in a tribute called Beacons of Light, signifying the light of peace that emerged from the darkness of four years of war.

All are welcome to attend from 6.45pm when Heart and Soul, the Poundbury Community Choir will be performing. The Last Post will sound at 6.55pm followed by the lighting of the Beacon.

At 7.05pm the Town Crier, Alistair Chisholm will deliver the ‘Cry for Peace around the World’.