Holiday Open House Scheduled at Morven Park

A will be held at on Saturday, Dec. 3 where the public will be invited to tour former Governor Westmoreland Davis’ mansion in its finest holiday attire.  

Guest will have the opportunity to learn about wintertime activities that would have taken place in the 1920 era including social events, farm planning, and the household’s holiday chores.

“Basically the theme is winter activities in Morven Park,” said Director of Public Programming Abby Pfisterer. "Governor and Mrs. Davis were never here at Christmas time so what we’re interpreting is what would have happened had they been here, and what happened regardless, such as what nature was doing at this time, what farmers would be doing and what women in Leesburg would be doing at Christmas.”

Pfisterer said each room of the mansion will be staged so that it reflects early 20th century winter time activities. An interpreter will be available in each room to explain what would have happened during those times. Nineteenth century caroling, children activities, cookies and refreshments will also be available.

"It’s an opportunity for us to show a different side of history that we really don’t talk about during the year," Pfisterer said, adding that this is the first holiday open house at Morven Park, which everyone is “pretty excited about”.

“It’s a great way to see Morven Park decked out for the holidays,” she said. “It’s beautiful here. Not just with all the decorations but the landscape is gorgeous. It’s just a wonderful place to visit this time of year.”

Members and volunteers are invited to a sneak peek at 4 p.m. on Saturday while the public is invited at 5 p.m. The open house is scheduled until 8 p.m. on Saturday. The cost of admission is $5 for adults. Kids and members are free. Reservations are requested.

Regularly scheduled holiday tours will continue through Jan. 2 from noon to 4 p.m. Admission prices will be $5 for adults, $3 for ages 6 to 12. Children under 6 are free.