In Tekirdag, the 19th-century Ottoman house on Namik Kemal Street in the Orta Cami neighborhood was restored to its original form and renovated into a three-story structure called the Namik Kemal House through the collaborative efforts of the Namik Kemal Association, the Provincial Special Administration, the Tekirdag National Education Foundation, the Tekirdag Municipality, and volunteer organizations. It was opened to the public on December 21, 1993. Researcher Mehmet Serez also made significant contributions to the restoration of the house.
In this three-story wooden house, a civilian Ottoman structure in Tekirdag, documents related to Namik Kemal are displayed alongside ethnographic artifacts collected from the region.
The house, situated in a large garden, has an exhibition hall in the basement equipped with large panels. The marble-floored ground floor hall features portraits of Ataturk and Namik Kemal. There is also a display cabinet containing oil paintings of Namik Kemal's grave in Bolayir and French Rakoczi II. Two large panels in the hall display places named after Namik Kemal, news articles, documents, photographs of his family, and old pictures of Tekirdag. 19th-century household items and handicrafts, lighting fixtures, coffee and tea sets complement the display.
The Ahmet Yavuzkurt Tekirdag Kitchen room is visible on the left side of the hall. Here, the following items used in Tekirdag cuisine are displayed: range hoods, braziers, stoves, drying racks, wire cupboards, Tekirdag-style dining trays, built-in water kettles, ribbed and lidded copper pans, a series of copper pots, wooden spoon holders, pitchers and jugs, oil paintings depicting bread making, churns, bulgur grinding stones, starch and dough troughs, coffee cabinets, coffee pestles, baklava trays, pickle jars, jars for pressing leaves, and baskets. Thus, all the items used in Tekirdag cuisine are displayed in this section.
The old pantry room of the house has been decorated and arranged as the 19th Division and Ataturk Room. Here you can see the Reserve Barracks where Lieutenant Colonel Mustafa Kemal established the 19th Division (Brigade) between February 2-20, 1915, the Coastal Barracks, the old piers, the Martyrs' Cemetery of the 57th Regiment, whose soldiers all perished in the defense of the Gallipoli Peninsula, photographs of the commanders of the 19th Division, photographs and documents related to the trip of Gazi Mustafa Kemal Pasha and his friends to Tekirdag on August 23, 1928, regarding the Alphabet Reform, photographs related to the 1936 Muratli and Corlu Maneuvers, and the 1937 Thrace Maneuvers, as well as the letters he sent to the Tekirdag Turkish Hearth as the Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey. A map of the Marmara Region and Piri Reis's world map are also located in this section.
At the top of the stairs leading to the first floor of the house, there is a photograph of Namik Kemal with his grandson. The house also features paintings depicting the crossing of the Bosphorus by raft by Ottoman Sultan Yavuz Sultan Selim, who fell ill and died in Sirtkoy between Tekirdag and Muratli, as well as Sultan Alparslan, the conqueror of Anatolia, and Prince Gazi Suleyman Pasha, the conqueror of Rumelia.
The upper floor of the house is arranged as a guest room of an old Tekirdag house. Here, a low divan, back cushions, corner cushions, rugs, a Thessaloniki brazier, a walnut console and a large mirror, built-in wooden bedroom wardrobes, Tekirdag bridal dresses (branched and embroidered), an incense burner, oil lamps, dowry bundles, headbands, and money pouches are displayed.
Mehmet Serez in the Tekirdag Research and Press Room; The collection includes photographs of famous people born and working in Tekirdag, newspaper and magazine collections from the last 30 years published in Tekirdag, and works and pictures of theater and music artists.
In a recessed display case, there are photographs taken in 1883 of the places where Namik Kemal served as governor: Gallipoli, Mytilene, Rhodes, and Chios. Another display case featuring Namik Kemal's works is also interesting. The hall contains paintings of Namik Kemal, an old Tekirdag mansion, an old street in Uzunkopru, and handcrafted works. In a large glass case, a felt prayer rug, Namik Kemal's first article from the Hurriyet Newspaper, which he published in London, his letters, and translations are displayed.
In the room dedicated to Namik Kemal, there are pictures of his grandfather, Abdullatif Bey, the governor of Tekfurdag, Namik Kemal at the age of 6, a piano, a mirror, the poet's biography, his family tree, a charcoal drawing of Ali Riza Hafiz from Tokat who gave him his name, prayer rugs, and an oil painting of Namik Kemal.
