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DALLAS - Begin the holiday season with Texas’ earliest
residents and see how holiday traditions were celebrated in the late 1800s. “Get
Wrapped Up in Candlelight” will be this
year’s theme for the 42nd Annual Candlelight Celebration at Dallas
Heritage Village, celebrating the beauty of holidays past with seasonal décor
and traditional celebrations featured throughout the Village. The event takes
place December 14 and 15, 3 - 9 p.m., at Dallas Heritage Village,
1515 South Harwood.
General
admission to Candlelight (gate prices), Dec. 15-16 is $12 for adults, $10 for
seniors 65+ and $8 for children ages 4-12. Children 3 and under and museum
members are free. Tickets purchased online at www.DallasHeritageVillage.org
by December 6 are $10 for adults, $8 for seniors 65+ and $6 for children. Visit http://www.dallasheritagevillage.org/candlelight
for more details or call 214-421-5141. The event is sponsored by Baylor Health
Care System.
Farmers
Market, one block north of Dallas Heritage Village on Harwood Street, offers
limited free public parking. Self-parking at the Village is available for $5
and valet-parking for $10 per vehicle. Guests with valid handicap tags will be
able to valet park for $5. All proceeds from Candlelight, the museum’s biggest
annual public fundraiser, benefit museum programs at Dallas Heritage Village.
Take
a stroll and experience gleeful carolers, holiday storytelling, hand-weaving,
blacksmithing, interpreters in traditional costume, and many other festive
activities such as the American Flyer model train exhibit in
the Depot, operated by the Lone Star Flyer Model Train Club. “Candlelight is a magical event that has been a
holiday tradition in Dallas for 42 years, and we welcome visitors from across
the globe,” said
Melissa Prycer, Interim Executive Director, Dallas Heritage Village. “There are few places that get people in the holiday spirit like
Candlelight, which honors and creates memories within a beautiful landscape set
for the season.”
During Candlelight, pioneer and Victorian Texas
is brought to life by characters dressed in period costumes. Guests may explore 38 historic buildings,
circa 1840 to 1910, traditionally decorated by area garden clubs. Different family holiday traditions and
activities are celebrated at Candlelight by interpreters. Visit with Mrs. Freeman in the Shotgun House
and Mrs. de Léon in her two-room Tejano home, both preparing for the holidays. At the 1860s Farmstead, see how early Dallas pioneers enjoyed a
modest Christmas as the country approached the Civil War. Listen to Cowboys tell tales around the
bonfire, and stop by the Alamo saloon for a root beer and a game of dominoes. Don’t forget to visit a special 19th
century guest, St. Nicholas, in the Depot and snap a photo with him.
This year Dallas Heritage Village welcomes
back the bandstand, one of its most beloved structures. The bandstand was in need of some
preservation work and a “secret Santa” stepped forward to give it a much needed
facelift. The new structure will be
revealed and the generous donor named prior to Candlelight. Stop by the bandstand and share a special
past memory of this structure or participate in a Christmas craft.
New this year, attendees my visit the booths
of local artisans as well as a satellite Dallas Heritage Village store, set up
in Browder Springs Hall. Letterpress notecards and Candlelight
bandstand prints will be available for purchase along with commemorative
bandstand ornaments, celebrating the past and future of what is one of Dallas
Heritage Village’s most recognized landmarks.
Also in Browder Springs Hall and the Law
Office, kids may participate in hands-on holiday crafts, which include creating
macramé candles with
a few simple knots; making or playing an old-fashioned game, using the ancient
art of paper folding (origami); and creating hand-decorated wrapping paper
using pioneer techniques. Attendees may also ride around the Village in a surrey pulled by the Village’s loveable Mammoth Jack
donkeys Nip and Tuck ($5 per rider) or a
hay wagon pulled by a vintage tractor ($3 per rider). Local food trucks, such as Ruthie’s Grilled
Cheese Truck, Tutta’s Pizza, Easy Slider, Good Karma Kitchen, and more will
have delicious food available to purchase.
Wine will be available for purchase from Times Ten Cellars.
Local musicians, dancers and
storytellers entertain at the Renner School (circa 1888), on the Main Street
(circa 1900) stage, in the Pilot Grove Church (circa 1890), on porches of
Victorian homes and along the candlelit pathways of the Village. Holiday tales
will be recounted and seasonal songs sung by strolling carolers throughout the
village. Local entertainment groups include
dance companies, musicians, bands, choirs, and many
others. Performers to date include the
Allegro Guitar Society, Lakewood Varsity Chorus, and Shufflin’ Shoe. For a complete list of performers and
performance times, please visit www.DallasHeritageVillage.org.
Candlelight corporate and family sponsorship
opportunities are available by contacting Lisa Simpson at 214-413-3662, lsimpson@dallasheitagevillage.org.
Various sponsorship levels are available
with benefits as well as area and activity sponsorships.
Special Days
during the Holiday Season
Decorated by
local garden clubs and community groups, the Village’s 38 historic structures will be open for touring during regular museum hours throughout December.
Hours are Tuesday – Saturday, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.; Sunday, 12-4 p.m.
(Closed on Monday).
With the exception of December 14 and 15, free parking is
available at the Village throughout the season.
About Dallas Heritage Village
Dallas Heritage Village, located at Old City Park, is a nationally accredited
history museum, depicting life in Dallas from 1840-1910. It is one of only five
museums in the Dallas area to have this distinction. The grounds showcase 38
historic structures, including log cabins, the pre-Civil War Millermore home, a
Victorian Main Street, a railroad complex, an 1860s farmstead with livestock, a
19th century church, school and more. Visitors discover how
crops were grown, animals cared for and how family living progressed from log
cabins to grand manors and Victorian homes. Dallas Heritage Village is
supported, in part, by the City of Dallas Office of Cultural Affairs and the
Texas Commission on the Arts as well as individual and group donations. Dallas
Heritage Village was nominated in 2011 and 2012 by D Magazine as one of
the top Dallas-area family attractions. It is located at 1515 South Harwood, one block
south of Farmers Market in Downtown Dallas. Hours of operation are Tuesday –
Saturday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. and Sunday, noon – 4 p.m. The Village is closed the
months of January and August. Regular admission is $9 for adults, $7 for
seniors 65+ and $5 for children ages 4-12. Children under 4 and members
of Dallas Heritage Village are admitted free of charge. For more information
call 214-421-5141 or visit www.DallasHeritageVillage.org
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