Celebrate Three Centuries of Christmas at Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum

Each year, using armloads of greenery and native plants and authentic decorations from days of yore, the Webb-Deane-Stevens (WDS) Museum’s “Three Centuries of Christmas” tours show in fascinating detail how the American holiday season evolved over the past 300 years.

This year these special tours will be offered on weekends:

Saturday, December 7, 2019, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., through Sunday, December 29, 2019, 1 to 4 p.m.

Admission is $12.

The “Three Centuries of Christmas” historic view of holidays past begins in the Silas Deane House, circa 1770, where New Year’s Day was the main holiday, rather than Christmas, due to Puritanical customs that lingered in New England. The house reflects the preparations for the Deane’s “New Years’ Day Calling,” when prominent gentlemen in the community would call on the lady of the household. It was also the day when individuals who owed the family money would meet privately with the master of the house to settle their debts or make a New Year’s resolution to provide goods or services to settle their accounts in the coming year.

The Isaac Stevens House is decorated to depict the holiday celebrations of a middle-class household during the early to mid-1800s, when many of the Christmas traditions known today were adopted in New England. The “best” parlor features a charming table-top tree decorated with candles, gilded eggshells and edible treats, in keeping with the era. The Stevens House also includes an exhibit with enlarged color illustrations by Thomas Nast from the museum’s rare 1888 copy of Clement Moore’s “An Account of a Visit of St Nicholas.” The colorful images demonstrate how the secular Christmas of today was created in the early 19th century, which coincides with the museum’s interpretation of Christmas at the Stevens House.

At the Joseph Webb House visitors view decorations typical of the early 20th century, including Christmas trees, evergreen roping, fresh greens, fruit, and period ornaments.