Newtown's Holiday Open House Tour Opens Saturday

Six homes and seven public buildings will open their doors Saturday, Dec. 3 for the 54th Annual Newtown Holiday House Tour.

The annual tour, which is presented by he Newtown History Association, beings at 10 a.m. and ends at 4 p.m. on Saturday and will take participants around Newtown to see the the historic buildings.

Private homes on the tour are:

• Francis Erwin House – Fleck-Dinneen, 127 Court St.

• John Bond House – Nicholl, 239 Court St.

• Ann Buckman School – Waitkus, 201 E. Penn St.

• Allen Lovett House – Kumor, 401 E. Washington St.

• Scurlock House, 101 Liberty St.

• Aaron Ridge House – Beasley-Titus, 27 Court St. (pictured above)

Public buildings open for the tour are:

• Stocking Works, 301 S. State St.

• Anthony Petsis Corporate Offices, 401 S. State St.

• Newtown Fire Association, 14 Liberty St.

• Saint Luke’s Episcopal Church, 100 E. Washington St.

• Friends Home and Village, Paxson Hall, 50 S. Congress St.

• Newtown Library Company, E. Centre Ave and Congress St.

• Half Moon Inn, Centre Ave and Court St.

The $30 cost of a tour ticket includes entry into the Half-Moon Inn, home to the Newtown Historic Association, where participants can enjoy period musical entertainment, hearth-side colonial cooking demonstrations, and refreshments of mulled cider and cheese.

Tickets can be purchased on the day of the tour at the Half-Moon Inn, Court Street and Centre Avenue and at the Stocking Works, 301 S. State St. Children under 12 are can tour for free.

No picture taking or high-heeled shoes are permitted in the houses.

For more information, call the Newtown Historic Association at (215)968-4004 or visit the association's website.

In case of a major snow event, the tour will be held Sunday, Dec. 4.

Check out the history of the tour from the Newtown Historic Association:

The original Open House tour was sponsored by the Newtown Civic and Historic Association and was called “Christmas in Colonial Newtown.”
It was held on Saturday December 14, 1963 from 1 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. and the price per person was only $1.50.
Seven distinctive homes in Newtown were featured, including the Homestead (1800) at 127 South Sycamore Street; a colonial residence (1740) on South State Street; the Quintin House (1801) at 149 North State Street; the Bird in Hand (1690) at 111 South State Street; the Georgian House (1830) at 111 Court Street; the Schofield House (1837) at 113 Court Street; and a Victorian house (1860) at 219 Washington Avenue.
Other buildings included on the tour were the Newtown Presbyterian Church, St. Luke’s Episcopal Church and Christmas Alley of the Hanging Lamp on North State Street.

Image via Newtown Historic Association