DEERFIELD — The holiday spirit will be on full display in Historic Deerfield later this year during special, interactive evening tours through historic houses on Old Main Street.
“On this special illuminated evening tour, participants will visit the 19th-century residents of Deerfield as they get ready for a ball. Along the way they will encounter a variety of scenes capturing the spirit of he evening,” according to Historic Deerfield.
“Visitors will step inside the Hall Tavern kitchen and see the food being prepared, listen to musicians rehearse in the ballroom, meet an anxious mother sending her daughter off to the ball, and learn about a romantic intrigue that’s got the village residents talking.”
According to a news release, the tour will end with samples of roasted chestnuts and refreshments.
The roughly 45-minute long tours will be held Dec. 2 and 9, leaving every half hour from 5 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Along with the tours, Historic Deerfield will also celebrate the holiday season by serving as a collection center for donations for the Community Action Family Center.
Historic Deerfield will be collecting donation gifts “for children up to 18 years of age to be distributed to families during the holidays.”
Donations can be dropped off starting Nov. 25 through Dec. 11 during the museum’s open hours, 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Gifts should be unwrapped, and can include “toys, gift cards, and even helpful items like gift wrap and tape.”
Community Action is an anti-poverty agency serving families in Franklin County and beyond and it operates a Family Center in Greenfield.
Through late November and all of December, Historic Deerfield will host a “month-long series of traditional festive activities,” including holiday hearth cooking and baking events.
Events begin with the fourth annual King Arthur Flour Cookie Baking Contest on Dec. 3. “King Arthur Flour and Historic Deerfield are looking for the best holiday cookie recipe,” according to the press release. This year there will be new categories including “Raise the Bar” and “Gingerbread.”
Five finalists will compete for a grand prize. The deadline for entries is Nov. 7.
Other events during the holiday season include a Black Friday alternative “Day of Giving” — a chance to make hand-crafted gifts — and a re-enactment event “17th-century life” Nov. 26. There will also be wreath making during the weekend of Nov. 28 at the Deerfield Community Center, horse-drawn wagon rides starting in early December, and “Make Your Own Hot Chocolate Mix” weekends from Dec. 3 through Dec. 18, among other holiday events.
To enter the cookie baking contest, or for more information on events through the holiday season visit historic-deerfield.org/recipecontest.