The Frontier Culture Museum: Lantern Tours 2015
There’s a sense of excitement this time of year. From watching holiday parades with friends to the special Christmas desserts made with family members, it seems that there is something special going on almost every day of the month. What happens when you add a dash of history to the mix? You get Lantern Tours of the Frontier Culture Museum in Staunton, Virginia!
The lantern-lit tours at this living history museum will take you back in time to villages around the world: “Visitors will enjoy vignettes at England, Ireland, Germany, 1820s America, and 1850s America including a Mummer’s play near the Irish Forge and a horse-drawn wagon ride from the Old World to the New World.” You’ll also enjoy post-tour refreshments and live music in the Dairy Barn Lecture Hall to complete the experience. Ready to take a step back in time for the holiday season?
Fast Facts:
Where: The Frontier Culture Museum, 1290 Richmond Road, Staunton, VA 24401
When: December 18-23, 2015, 6:00 P.M. – 8:00 P.M.
Cost: Cost: Adults $15.00, Children $8.00 (Reservations are requires, so click here to grab your tickets now.)
Lodging: A Shenandoah Valley B&B!
Happy Holidays! We look forward to seeing you here in the Shenandoah Valley.
Frontier Culture Museum Lantern Tours, Staunton, VA
If you’ve never been to the Frontier Culture Museum in Staunton, VA, then you’re missing out. This outdoor exhibit brings history to life with its re-creations of the lives of 17th and 18th century Germany, Ireland, West Africa, England, and America: “The Frontier Culture Museum of Virginia tells the story of the thousands of people who migrated to colonial America, and of the life they created here for themselves and their descendants” (Frontier Culture Museum).
A normal tour of the museum is already fascinating, and every year, they take it one step further with thematic Lantern Tours that will make you feel as though you’ve traveled back in time. Beginning on December 12, 2014, these lantern tours will include a Mummer’s play, a horse-drawn wagon ride, live music, and refreshments in the Dairy Barn Lecture Hall.
The Frontier Culture Museum’s Lantern Tours are a unique holiday treat, so this year, do something different, and spend a bit of the season in the past.
Quick Facts:
Dates: December 12, 13 , 14 & 15
December 19, 20, 21, 22 & 23
Time: 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM (beginning at 6:00, tours take place every 30 minutes).
Lodging: A BBHSV Bed & Breakfast
Click here to purchase your Lantern Tour tickets.
May Day at the Frontier Culture Museum, Staunton, Virginia
Visiting the Frontier Culture Museum in Staunton, Virginia almost feels like you’ve been transported to the past. Between the replica houses, the costumed actors, and the demonstrations of daily life in the 17th, 18th, and 19th Century, history really does come to life right before your eyes. Furthermore, the Frontier Culture Museum offers a number of festivals throughout the year, and one upcoming event is the May Day Festival.
May Day is a celebration of spring, and the Frontier Culture Museum’s activities reflect a number of traditional activities from historic England, Ireland, and Germany. “In medieval England, people would celebrate the start of spring by going out to the country or woods—‘going a-maying’—and gathering greenery and flowers, or ‘bringing in the may’” (Infoplease).
On Saturday, May 3, 2014, take part in the available food, drink, children’s activities, and celebratory games. Enjoy the antics of the Mummers—costumed pantomimes—at the German and Irish farms, and, of course, join in a lively dance around the Maypole. Festivities begin at noon and run through 5:00 p.m.
(Need nearby lodging? How about a BBHSV member inn: https://www.bbhsv.org/shenandoah-valley-virginia-inns.htm)
Photo by Katie Currid