The Silver City Museum will celebrate the holidays with its annual Victorian Christmas open house on Thursday, December 13, from 5:00 p.m.- 8:00 p.m. Presented in the sharing spirit of bygone community celebrations, this cherished event makes the most of the Museum’s Victorian home. Decorations, costumed characters, activities, and entertainment will transport guests to Christmas Past, when the Ailman family built the house in 1881. As in past years, musical guests will perform holiday and other traditional music, Christmas cookies and warm spiced cider will be served in the kitchen, and children can participate in fun holiday activities and visit with Father Christmas!

This year the Museum is introducing a new feature to celebrate community sharing and Christmas surprise: Scrooge’s Gift Swap! Visitors are encouraged to bring a small wrapped gift to put under the tree, and to take one in exchange. This holiday grab bag is named for Ebenezer Scrooge, the famous character from Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, a classic of Victorian literature in which the miserly Scrooge learns generosity. Forgot a gift? No problem, gifts can be purchased and wrapped on the spot at the Museum Store. Children can even participate using the holiday crafts they make at the event! The Museum asks that no gift cost more than $10. “From” labels will be provided, so you may even connect with your giver or giftee!

Musical entertainment will be provided by Amos Torres at 5:30 p.m., Cactus Wren at 6:00 p.m., Moonshine at 6:30 p.m., Silver Chorale at 7:00 p.m., and the Concert Band of the Southwest at 7:30 p.m.. Our emcee for the evening will be Tiny Tim from A Christmas Carol.

The Museum Store will be open and stocked with gifts for all ages, sold tax-free with wrapping included. Museum Society Members can take advantage of their one-time holiday discount of 20%. There will be a membership and volunteer table for visitors to become members and learn about volunteer opportunities. And of course the museum’s various exhibits will of course be on display for all to enjoy. 

Generous sponsorship by First American Bank and Finn’s Gallery will allow the museum to offer this celebration for free to the community. Much time, labor, cookies, and entertainment are donated by generous volunteers to make Victorian Christmas special. To be a volunteer or cookie donor, please contact Volunteer Coordinator Jo Lutz at VolunteerCoordinator@SilverCityMuseum.org or 575-597-0229.

The Silver City Museum creates opportunities for residents and visitors to explore, understand and celebrate the rich and diverse cultural heritage of southwestern New Mexico by collecting, preserving, researching and interpreting the region’s unique history.  For information, please contact the Museum at (575) 538-5921, info@silvercitymuseum.org or go to the Museum’s website here.