Max Gate

About the museum

Max Gate is the house that the novelist and poet Thomas Hardy designed for himself. Trained as an architect, he planned it between 1883 and 1885 on the edge of Dorchester and lived there until his death in 1928. The name comes from a nearby tollgate known locally as Mack's Gate, after its keeper Henry Mack. Hardy wanted a solid, respectable home that matched his position as a successful author, and he wrote some of his best-known work here, including Tess of the d'Urbervilles and Jude the Obscure, as well as much of his poetry.

Most of Hardy's possessions had been dispersed before the house passed to the National Trust, so the rooms have been furnished to show how the spaces were used for living and writing. The walled garden, with its high walls and large trees that protected Hardy's privacy, is much as he planned it. A sundial on the east tower, which Hardy designed and his wife Florence put up in his memory, carries the Latin question Quid de Nocte? (What of the night?).

The house stands in the middle of a late Neolithic enclosure, which Hardy found while the foundations were being dug, and the site is a scheduled monument. The building is Grade I listed and has been looked after by the National Trust since it was bequeathed to the Trust in 1940.

Highlights

• Victorian home designed by Thomas Hardy, where he wrote Tess of the d'Urbervilles and Jude the Obscure
• Guided tours led by volunteers
• Walled garden kept close to Hardy's original layout
• Sundial designed by Hardy with the inscription Quid de Nocte?
• Late Neolithic enclosure beneath the house
• Second-hand bookshop supporting conservation

Permanent exhibition

• Hardy's House, Max Gate – Guided visit to the rooms Hardy designed and lived in, with the walled garden and sundial.

Operated by

National Trust

Admission & discounts

The 2026 prices are shown without Gift Aid; paying with Gift Aid adds about 10 per cent as an optional donation. Entry is free for National Trust members, who should bring their membership card.

Accessibility

• Partially wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: not available
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

There is a 50-yard walk from the street to the house up a gravel driveway that was recently resurfaced and may be difficult for wheelchairs until it settles. Wheelchair users can be driven up the drive by prior arrangement, by phone. The house has narrow corridors, steps and uneven ground, and has ramped access in places. Seating is available, a large-print guide is offered and there is a virtual tour. The toilet is not an accessible toilet. Only assistance dogs are allowed.

Kids & families

There is a family ticket, and children under 5 do not need a ticket.

Getting there & parking

Enter DT1 2FN or "Max Gate" in the satnav; the house is in a cul-de-sac off Syward Road. National Cycle Network Route 2 passes the property just after the bridge over the A35.

Amenities & dining

• Café: not available
• Museum shop

There is no café and no refreshments. The second-hand bookshop sells Victorian fiction, poetry, architecture and gardening books, and its proceeds pay for conservation work.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit