Day 2: Historic Holiday Fun

LCP's Second Day of Christmas holiday blog-a-thon is brought to you by Renee Kreczmer, CPS third-grade teacher extraordinaire and author of our forthcoming Just Add Water: Making the City of Chicago. Just Add Water teaches Chicago history to kids and offers suggestions for family history fun around town. Here she provides her top suggestions for history-laden holiday activities.

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1. While Holiday shopping along Michigan Avenue, make a stop at the Old Water Tower & Pumping Station, and the site of Fort Dearborn and DuSable's Trading Post near Tribune Tower and the DuSable Bridge.

2. Candlelight House Walk at the Historic Pullman Village

11141 South Cottage Grove Avenue
Chicago, IL 60628-4651

Sunday, December 12, 2010, 3:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.

Enjoy the season viewing Pullman decked out for the holidays! Tickets include tour, hors d'oreuvres, and desserts. Silent auction will be held. Reservations required. Advance tickets $35 (thru 12/6) Tickets $40 (after 12/6). Call 773/785-8901 for information.

3. Christmas Candlelight Tours at Glessner and Clarke House Museums

1800 S. Prairie Avenue,

Chicago, IL 60616

Saturday, December 11, and Sunday, December 12

Tours at 5:30, 6:00, and 6:30pm each evening

These special 90-minute docent-led tours will highlight Christmas customs and decorations of the 19th century. The museums take on a special glow at the holiday season, and these tours are the perfect way to usher in the holidays by learning about the origin of many of our most beloved customs. The Clarke House will feature decorations of the 1830s and 1840s, when the celebration of Christmas as we know it today was just starting to take root. The Glessner House will feature decorations of the late 19th century, including a live Christmas tree shipped from the Glessner's former summer estate in New Hampshire, filled withglass and paper ornaments. After the tour, participants are invited to stroll over to the Wheeler Mansion for hot cider and cookies, served in the beautifully restored rooms of this 1870 landmark home, now a boutique hotel. $18 for adults, $14 for children 8-12; members: $15 for adults, $11 for children 8-12. Pre-paid reservations required. R.S.V.P. to 312/326-1480

Museums Decorated for Christmas
Wednesday, November 24 through Sunday, January 2

Experience the museums decked out in 19th century Christmas decor!

The Prairie Avenue area is also the site of the Fort Dearborn Massacre and home to the mansions of Kimball (pianos), George Pullman, and Marshall Field.

4. Holidays at the Chicago History Museum

1601 N. Clark St.

Chicago, IL 60614

Saturday, December 11; Noon-4:30 p.m.

Come inside for a warm afternoon of holiday cheer. The Museum’s seasonal celebration includes live ice-carving demonstrations, joyful caroling and musical performances, and the debut of the winning recipe from the North & Clark Café Holiday Cookie Challenge. Families are invited to visit with Santa and write letters to the North Pole. Cost is free with Museum admission.

5. Nouvelle Annee at Old Fort Wayne

1201 Spy Run Ave.

Fort Wayne, IN 46805

Saturday, January 29, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Experience a winter with the French of Fort Miamies. French military, civilians, and local native Americans will be recreating the daily life at a Fort on the frontier . Mail call, drilling , scouting the area, cooking, and sewing will be some of the events taking place during the event. Old Fort Wayne has the same design as Fort Dearborn, both forts designed and built by Captain Whistler.

6. Starved Rock State Park Sundays (March through December), Noon-1:30 p.m. & 1:30-3:00 p.m. Board a trolley outside of the Great Hall area of the Lodge. Enjoy a historic trolley ride with stops at the Starved Rock State Park Visitor Center where you will see a short video of the area. You will also travel to the Illinois Waterway Visitor Center where you will see Starved Rock from across the river and watch as the river traffic passes through the locks. You will also travel through the village of Utica and hear about the Illinois and Michigan Canal. While aboard, the driver will narrate the history and legends of the area. For tickets and information please call 815/220-7386. $12 Adults, $10 Seniors, $8 Children 10 and under.