Holiday Smiler from Barnum Museum . . .

Celebrate the Season!

9th Annual Holiday Exhibit
Opens the Day after Thanksgiving
at The Barnum Museum

Starting Friday, November 27th, The Barnum Museum galleries will be decorated representing the Victorian Christmas era with the Celebrate the Season displays presented this year by the Downtown Special Services District (DSSD) of Bridgeport.

For the ninth year, the museum, including both the Wheeler and Iranistan period rooms, will be decorated for the Christmas season in styles reflective of the 19th Century. The displays demonstrate how the ideal of Christmas became woven into American tradition. Explore the elaborate historic galleries and delight in the ornaments of the Victorian age, filled with festive decorations and costumes from the museum's collection. From sugared fruits and homemade ornaments, to glass decorations and the earliest electric tree lights, the presentation is a wonderful journey into holidays past.

Celebrate the Season will be on display during regular museum hours at The Barnum Museum through January 10th, 2010.

Celebrate the Season Exhibition Gallery Talks for the Holidays:
Thursday, December 17th 11:00 a.m. - noon
Thursday, December 17th 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.
(includes a visual presentation)
Tuesday, December 22nd 11:00 a.m. - noon

This series of gallery talks and lectures will be conducted by Kathleen Maher, Executive Director and Curator of The Barnum Museum. Originally presented at the annual meeting of the American Association of Museum's in Cleveland, Ohio, Ms. Maher will discuss the innovations of holiday exhibitions at historic museums.

Each talk will chronicle the evolution of the Christmas celebration during the 19th century. Engaging and delightful, she will examine family meals, simple holiday decor and the elaborate décor of the mansions from the Victorian age.

Each talk will be followed by a walk through of the museum galleries showing the recently recreated P.T. Barnum Iranistan Library, representative of how the holiday celebrations began in 1850. The tour guides guests through the five decades of evolution from the Victorian ideals of nostalgia to our modern holiday.


Other holiday programs include:

Saturday, December 5th, 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. - Barnum Holiday Fest
Delight in the spirit of the holidays and join us we celebrate the holiday season with crafts, caroling, hot cocoa and cookies! Create Victorian ornaments, holiday cards, snowflakes and more, or participate in the Gingerbread contest. Join in the events: flyer-pdf

Saturday, December 5th, 5:00 -7:00 p.m. – McLevy Green Tree Lighting
See the annual holiday tree lighting and stroll along the wonderful historic streets of downtown. The museum will be open so you can also enjoy the Celebrate the Season displays.

Tuesday, December 8th, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. – Holidays with the Mark Twain Family
Patti Philippon, Curator of the Mark Twain House and Museum, will tell us how the Mark Twain family celebrated Christmas at Nook Farm in Hartford. Visitors will hear engaging quotes from Twain, the wonderful tales he told his children and delight in the popular wit from one of America's most important literary figures. Tea, hot chocolate and cookies will warm you holiday spirit.

Tuesday, December 15th, 11:00 - 11:45 a.m. – Reading of Night Before Christmas
Bridgeport’s First Lady, Sonya Finch, will read Clement Clarke Moore's timeless holiday tale, the enchanting Night Before Christmas.

The Barnum Museum has three floors of absolutely fascinating exhibits that illustrate the extraordinary life of Phineas Taylor Barnum. P.T. Barnum, one-term mayor of Bridgeport and four-term member of the Connecticut General Assembly, was born July 5th, 1810 in Bethel and died April 7th, 1891 in Bridgeport. The original museum building, owned by the City of Bridgeport, is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and is handicap accessible.

What: Celebrate the Season presented by DSSD Bridgeport

When: November 27th, 2009 – January 10th, 2010

Where: The Barnum Museum, 820 Main Street, Bridgeport CT. For more holiday programs and details call (203) 331-1104 or visit www.barnum-museum.org

Cost: Holiday Programs and Gallery Talks are
FREE with General Admission
Adults: $7
Seniors & college students: $5
Children 4 - 17: $4
Under 4: Free

Regular Barnum Museum Hours:
Tuesday – Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Sunday, Noon - 4:30 p.m.

The Barnum Museum Special Holiday Hours:
Closed on Thursday, November 26th;
Fridays, December 25th, 2009 and January 1st, 2010.
On Thursdays December 24th and December 31st the museum will be open from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

For more information about events at the Barnum Museum, contact (203) 331-1104, ext. 100 or visit www.barnum-museum.org.

Join The Barnum Museum on Facebook.

1 comment:

Caio Fern said...

it is really nice to meet you and your blog .