Hayes Home Holidays: Spirits of Christmas offers evening tours
Experience the magic and supernatural side of Christmas with beloved Christmas stories, including “A Christmas Carol,” by Charles Dickens, during an evening tour of parts of the historic Hayes Home.
Hayes Home Holidays: Spirits of Christmas tours will be offered Saturday, Dec. 18; Sunday, Dec. 19, Wednesday, Dec. 22 and Thursday, Dec. 23.
Dickens, one of the most popular writers of the Victorian era, was a favorite author of President Rutherford B. Hayes and lived at the same time as Hayes. Hear Dickens’ beloved stories in Hayes’ Victorian mansion, which will be lightly decorated for Christmas.
The Victorians believed Christmas was a time when the portal to another world was opened, which made the holiday popular for telling ghost stories. Many of Dickens’ works, including Christmas stories, feature the supernatural.
Enjoy the warmth of the Hayes Home at night, a time when it is not often open to visitors. Hear stories that will tingle your spine and leave you with a warm feeling and partake in a cup of wassail – a traditional holiday drink during Victorian times.
Tours will be offered at 5:30, 6, 6:30, 7, 7:30 and 8 p.m. each day. If those slots sell out, additional tours will be added.
Tickets for Hayes Presidential members are $15 for adults 19 and older, $8 for ages 6-18 and free for kids 5 and younger. Tickets for non-members are $18 for adults ages 19 and older, $10 for kids 6-18 and free for kids 5 and younger.
Advance tickets are recommended and can be purchased at rbhayes.org/events/2021/12/18/events/hayes-home-holidays-spirits-of-christmas/. Tickets will be sold at the front desk the days of each event, pending availability.
Those who are not vaccinated for COVID-19 must wear a face covering. Additional safety protocols may be put in place. For updates, visit rbhayes.org.
This is the fourth year Hayes Presidential has offered Hayes Home Holiday tours. Each year, the event has a different theme and experience for visitors. The tours are part of Hayes Presidential’s holiday season events, called “A Presidential Christmas.”
The Hayes Presidential Library & Museums located at Spiegel Grove at the corner of Hayes and Buckland avenues, Fremont.
For information, call 419-332-2081, visit rbhayes.org, like HPLM on Facebook at @rbhayespres and follow on Twitter and Instagram at @rbhayespres.