DCHPN

All aboard for a lifetime of memories! Your favorite holiday tradition returns to the Brandywine Museum of Art with model trains, dollhouses, and other miniature wonders, along with towering trees adorned with our signature, handmade “Critter” ornaments. Some special events. $10/25

Santa's Express- 75 Min journey with Santa through the Chester Creek Valley. 11am, 1, 3, 5pm. Weekends Nov 23-Dec 22. $15-65 Christmas Tree Train- Pick up your tree via train! 8 am only. Dec 1, 8, 15 $25-30 Tickets sell out fast!

See the trains in the barn and the trees and Santas in every room in the historic Grange Estate. Gift shoppe is open for holiday shopping. Open most weekends 1-4 and some special events on Friday evenings. Dec 20 and 27 open 5-7:30 pm. Check website for details.

This December, an annual Philadelphia tradition returns with holiday tours of the Fairmount Park Houses. Five of East Fairmount Park's beautiful and historic 18th and 19th century houses will be decorated for the season and open to the public for special tours. $5

Victorians invented Christmas as we know it, and this seasonal tour of the Ebenezer Maxwell Mansion allows visitors to see the ways the Maxwell, Hunter, and Stephenson families experienced and created new customs and established traditions in the 19th century. Thurs-Sun, 12, 1, 2 pm tours$6.50/14.10

Dozens of illuminated trees and lit displays draw visitors back every year to walk in the winter wonderland and linger in the festive atmosphere. A treasured Delco tradition for more than four decades. Delco Fare & Flair nights- Dec 5, 7, 8, 14, 15. Opening night 12/5

Your costumed guides will take you to West Chester’s early churches, department stores and cultural sites, learning about what the winter holidays meant to the people of West Chester from the late 1700s to the early 1900s. Tours weekends 11-12:30 and 1:30-3. $20

Help decorate the tree and enjoy food & drink from the Julbord (Christmas Table). Tomte search for the kids and a craft station. Tour the Cabin and warm yourself by the roaring fires. Shop the Butiken for gifts and Cabin swag.

The festivities shall start with a Christmas service followed by traditional Christmas songs and foods, and of course the Scandinavian Father Christmas, joulupukki, will make an appearance! Everyone is welcomed to bring their own dishes to share. $15.

Tour Anthony Wayne’s House and learn about holiday customs, create a festive craft, and enjoy beverages and cookies after the tour. All tours begin in the Carriage House. $5/10

Do you have questions about practical ways to preserve and/or make available the historical records in your care? No matter your archival involvement, we invite all to bring questions for Pennsylvania State Archives archivists to answer.

Are you looking to get involved or need volunteers? Register as a volunteer or as a non-profit to find your perfect match!

A timely reassessment, Kahan's work, The Presidency of Ulysses S. Grant sheds new light on the business of politics in the decade after the Civil War. On a lighter note, it was during Grant's first term as president that he signed a Congressional bill authorizing federal holidays.

Enjoy cocktails, music, light hors d’oeuvres, and a special document display—featuring Mummers, Wanamaker’s iconic Christmas light show, holiday celebrations in early America, and other festive treasures from HSP’s collection. $15/20

With 3 AMAZING comedians, and host, Eddie Gallagher, join us at The Drexelbrook for a side-splitting good time and help us raise money for Saint Francis of Assis to rebuild after the October fire. 21+, $65 includes buffet. Cash bar.

What do Christmas and cemeteries have in common? Well, not much… but as the secular aspects of the holiday evolved over the decades of the 19th century, those who contributed to that evolution have found their final resting place at Laurel Hill East! $8.50-17

Come watch the reenactment of George Washington’s daring 1776 Christmas night river crossing. During the event, several hundred reenactors in Continental military dress listen to an inspiring speech by General Washington and then row across the river in replica Durham boats.

Get ready to ring in the New Year with the CCHC! At our Have a Ball event, children can create their own party kit, including making their own party hat, noisemakers, resolutions, and other fun crafts and games with a New Year theme. They can even decorate a cookie to enjoy! $10