Amesbury Walkers

                   AMESBURY WALKERS


Dorchester Hardy and Barnes Trail

BWF PT No:  334  - 12 km


Walk Organiser: Elaine Cull, 12 St Georges School Court, Fordington, Dorchester, Dorset DT1 1AT

Email: elaine.m.cull@btinternet.com

Walk fee £1.00 (Cheques payable to Amesbury Walkers)

No award currently available please let me know if you are interested in a badge.


Start - Car Parking Top o’ Town Car Park OS 194 688 907, Sat Nav Code DT1 1XT. Toilets and café are situated in car park.   Currently £3-50 for four hours parking.  Alternative Parking – Various free parking in housing estates on route including Weatherbury Way DT1 2EF and join the route at ** (after Question 2).


Alternative start Route passes Dorchester South Railway station at * and there are signs to get the shortest distance there from Dorchester West Railway station.


Route Directions:


With back to Cafe in Top O’ Town car park head half left to exit car park through two sets of bollards. Cross road at zebra crossing and to the left is Thomas Hardy’s statue with information board on nearby building wall.


Q.1  Why would the site of Hardy’s statue appeal to Hardy?


With information board on your left go to roundabout and turn left down High West Street. Follow road downhill for 300 metres passing traffic lights.  Pass Dorchester Museum.  William Barnes was one of the founders of this Museum.  Immediately after bus stop, go through small white gate to visit statue of William Barnes.  William Barnes was a churchwarden at this church.


Inside this church is a copy of a plan of the church drawn by Thomas Hardy at the age of 16 for new pews in the church.  Hardy’s employer, John Hicks was not pleased that Hardy signed his own name on the design which is a serious breach of architectural etiquette. To find it turn right down first aisle and go to front of church, up a step, through wooden screen and drawing is on the left behind the door to the screen when open.


Return to crossing outside church. Cross road. Turn left and after 15 metres turn right into the pedestrian precinct. Walk down pedestrian precinct. Pause at Barclay’s Bank which was Henchard’s House in ‘The Mayor of Casterbridge’ and on the left is an information board.


Q.2 What happened to Hardy in 1910?


After 50 metres on the right above New Look is a plaque to the Bugler Sisters which explains the original Hardy Players rehearsed here. The Hardy Players were an amateur dramatic society in Dorchester who adapted and staged the works of Thomas Hardy, with input from Thomas Hardy himself, between 1908 and 1924. Today the New Hardy Players bring the stories of Thomas Hardy to life through evocative dramatisations of his work.


After another 60 metres on the the right hand side is Fox and Sons Estate Agent where William Barnes lived from 1847 to 1862 and ran a boarding school for 14 boys.


Next door is The Gorge Cafe where Thomas Hardy worked from 1856 to 1862 as pupil to the architect John Hicks.


At end of pedestrian precinct cross road at crossing. Turn right and cross Prince of Wales road at crossing. Straight on and round to the left follow Weymouth Avenue up gentle hill for 400 metres passing road entrance to Dorchester South Railway Station and alternative start*


Opposite skate park is kissing gate on left and entrance to Maumbury Rings. Go in to Maumbury Rings and up slope at far end. Bear left down steps and exit by a different kissing gate next to railway cutting.  


Cross road. Turn left, cross railway line and in 200 metres take 2nd right Grosvenor Road. Go along road, cross Manor Road and continue on Grosvenor Road to end. At end on left hand side go to ‘no cycling’ sign and follow alley way. Cross Mellstock Road (Mellstock is Hardy’s name for Stinsford and Higher and Lower Bockhampton in his book Under the Greenwood Tree) and into Weatherbury Way.  (Weatherbury is Hardy’s name for Puddletown in his book Far From the Maddening Crowd).  Follow road round as it goes to the left. On right hand pavement **  (Alternative Start)  is a pedestrian barrier between 34 and 36 Weatherbury Way signed Came 1½ . Turn right between these houses and follow footpath on bridge over bypass, through trees and through gate. Cross track and straight on uphill keeping remains of fence on your left. Just before hedge turn left and walk one kilometre along one large field ,which curves around two tumuli, keeping hedge and later wood on your right to reach signpost (signed footpath to W Came ½) and gate in corner. Go through gate and wood and follow track downhill to road.


Go through gate and straight across road and follow road for 350 metres. (Ignore fork on right) After the road curves to the right a wall appears along edge of road on your right. At end of wall by road turn right and follow wall to church. (Alternative route to church stay on road for another 40 metres and turn right down unmarked track heading for wall corner. Keep wall on your right, carry on to church) William Barnes was rector here for many years. Go to bricked up door way in church wall and William Barnes grave is nearby. It is the grave second closest to the nearest drainpipe.


Q.3 Who is buried between William Barnes and the church building? (Answer on side of cross)  


Retrace route to wood at top of hill and sign post to W Came ½.


Keeping hedge on your right, walk down hill along the edge of field to corner. Go through gap in hedge. 50 metres after hedge on your left ends there is small gap in the hedge on the right leading to stile 10 metres away. Go to the stile but do not cross it. The other side of this field to the right of the gate and to the left of the tallest trees is Old Came Rectory where William Barnes lived. William Barnes was friends with Thomas Hardy for many years and Thomas Hardy visited William Barnes here. Retrace your steps 10 metres through hedge to path and turn right and continue to follow edge of field with hedge on your right to corner. Go through gap in corner and up slope. Take the right fork. Cross road and head for Came View Road sign. Turn left and follow sign to Max Gate. Max Gate is the name of the house designed by Thomas Hardy, built by his brother and father in 1885. Thomas Hardy lived here until his death in 1928.


Q.4  Stand at the entrance to Max Gate from the road, high up on the front wall of Max Gate a sundial can be seen. It says ‘Quid de Nocte?’ which is Latin for ‘What of the Night?’ Where is the sundial located? On the left or middle or right of the house?


With garden wall on your left retrace steps then turn left into Syward Road. After 50 metres (opposite small gate to number seven) is gate which Thomas Hardy would use to leave his property without visitors at the front door realising.


Follow road downhill and turn left on footpath just before railway line. Where paths cross turn right and cross railway line using bridge and follow track to join road. Turn right and continue downhill. At T junction turn right. Take first left Long Bridge Way. At T junction go almost straight ahead on to track and over bridge. Follow track round to the right and under bypass road and follow track to end. Go through kissing gate. With fence on right go straight ahead to first small bridge / sluice gate remains. Carry straight on passing 5 more sluice / small bridge remains keeping them all on your right then straight on through small gate and over wooden bridge and follow path for 160 metres. At T junction turn left. Cross bridge and after 10 metres turn right signed Stinsford. Follow path uphill to parking area by church yard wall. Go through main gate (to left of Reserved for Clergy sign) and into churchyard. Take left fork in path and immediately look for Thomas Hardy O M (middle of three graves). (Not upright gravestones)


Q. 5  Where are Thomas Hardy’s ashes?


Thomas Hardy played violin at this church along with his father and grandfather who played violin and cello in the church band. Thomas Hardy wanted his remains to be laid to rest in this churchyard. Turn round and follow path with lights on left in small black posts to church entrance. Inside the church the second window on the right is in memory to Thomas Hardy O M. On exiting the church turn left and follow path to gate in wall. Go through gate and turn right and follow path downhill to river. At path junction turn right and follow path for 1 kilometre. Path goes through two gates, under bypass, through two more gates over wooden bridge, over brick bridge and along edge of field with river on left to another gate near road. Go through gate and at road turn left. Follow pavement for 220 metres. Cross river and turn left, Kings Road. After 20 metres take first gate on left into play area. Keep to left side to go to information board in front of steam roller.


Q.6 Thomas Hardy made several complaints asking the siren not to sound at what time?


Keeping fence on left go to road and cross it. Turn right and then left taking path to left of National Tyres passing stone in end building laid by Mrs Thomas Hardy. It is the first homes built by Mill Street Housing Society to provide decent rented family homes. A rare luxury was each home had a bathroom and a condition of tenancy was to agree to use it for bathing only.


Follow path (Hardy Avenue) to road and then straight on to letterbox at T junction. Turn right. Go 15 metres, then by wall take path over river. After bridge go either way with steps on right and slope on left. At road turn right. Pass the Quakers Meeting House, some terrace houses and then turn left up alley signed Vicarage Lane. Cross road and walk along the alley way signed Victoria Buildings. At end follow path to left pass first bench to information board about Fordington Vicarage.

Q.7 Who gave poetry readings there?


Henry Moule’s oldest son was a close friend of Thomas Hardy for 50 years, a regular visitor to the Hardy house and taught Thomas Hardy how to paint. The Moule family was also friends with William Barnes.


Walk diagonally across the field heading towards church tower passing fenced in play area on your right. At house on corner of field turn right. At road turn right. At road junction straight on to High Street Fordington and continue straight on passing Teddy Bear Museum on your left.


At main road turn left and use crossing to cross road. Turn right and go 10 metres to first black railings. Building with black railings is where the White Hart Inn used to be. There is an information board by first railings. (Thomas Hardy mentions the White Hart in his book A Few Crusted Character in Life’s Little Ironies.) Retrace your steps to crossing and continue uphill to second parking meter. Look across the road and 16, 16A and 16B used to be the Phoenix Inn which appeared in Thomas Hardy’s poem ‘The Dance of the Phoenix’ It begins ‘Twas Christmas and the Phoenix Inn ....’ Continue uphill pass traffic lights and note the bay window at the King’s Arms Hotel which is included in the ‘Mayor of Casterbridge’ as well as other scenes at this hotel in this book written by Thomas Hardy. In March 1818 a coach arrived at the King’s Arms and Julia Miles got off the coach and by chance William Barnes was passing by. This was the first time they saw each other. They married in 1827.


Take next turning on right (North Square) at the Corn Exchange which Thomas Hardy describes in ‘Far From the Madding Crowd’. Pass Galpin’s Folly, the clock tower on the corner of the Corn Exchange which was expected to fall down when it was first built in 1864.


Bear half right pass Victory Court. On the left behind the high walls was Dorchester Prison. Straight ahead, down the road on a building you will see a sign which says Friary Court. Go down Friary Hill keeping Friary Court on your right. Cross the river at the bridge. Turn left and follow path to second information board at John’s Pond.

 

Q.8  There is a drawing on the board of Michael Henchard, Thomas Hardy’s Mayor of Casterbridge looking over what?


Turn left and cross river. (Immediately on right is the cottage the hangman lived in. Do not pass it.) Go straight across the road (Caters Place) and up the steps to the road and carry straight on. At number 32 called the Old Masons Arms is the pub where the hangman used to go regularly for a drink.


Take the next turning on the right going between the two ‘no motor vehicles except for access’ signs with Colliton House on your left and follow road to main road. Turn left to revisit Thomas Hardy statue and cross road, then through the bollards, passing Henchard Court on your right, and into car park.



Route updated: 15 May 2023

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