(207) 774-6177
Open: June 17 through October 17, Wednesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday 1 to 4 p.m. Group tours and school tours may be arranged by appointment from April through October.
Directions:From the south, take I-295 to Portland, Exit 5-A, follow Route 22 (Congress Street) west. From the north, take Exit 5-B to Congress Street. From Downtown Portland, drive west on Congress Street (Route 22). Turn Right onto St. John Street, then Left onto Park Avenue. After passing under I-295 Park Avenue becomes Congress Street again. Once on Congress Street: after crossing the Fore River, turn Left onto Waldo Street. At the top of the hill, make a sharp right turn onto Westbrook Street. Tate House is the second house on the left. Parking is available in a lot across the street.
When it was built in 1755, Tate House was considered a large and elegant home. The house was constructed for Captain George Tate (1700-1794) and his family who had arrived in the Colonies around 1750. Tate served as the Senior Mast Agent for the British Royal Navy, overseeing the cutting and shipping of white pines from Maine to England. This position assured Tate's success, and his status in the community is reflected by the style of architecture he selected for his home.
With its clapboards still unpainted, Tate House is one of two residences in Maine with an unusual clerestory in the gambrel roof. As the only pre-Revolutionary home in Greater Portland that is open to the public, the impressive period furnishings, beautiful grounds and herb gardens, and unique architecture of Tate House offer an insightful glimpse at the 18th century and life in Colonial Maine.
