Friday, December 6 was the official "School Days" where over 250 kids were in the park experiencing 12 "stations" again. This time, they had a Christmas theme going on.
One station was focused on historic Christmas Traditions. Another made over-the-fire Wassail, historic children's games, 1800's Christmas dance demonstration, musket firing, and more. I did a blacksmith demonstration for the kids, and actually had 2 "volunteers" pound iron on the anvil and another working the hand-crank wind turbine (billows were replaced with the hand turbine in 1830). And of course, we had 15 minutes for each ground and there were 12 groups. What a rush. It was a lot of fun.
Saturday, November 7 was the Jane Austin Christmas event. The event started at 5:30 and ran till 8:00 pm. The entire "yard" of the plantation was lit up with bon fires, tiki lights, and torches. The Oakley house was decorated inside and out.
The events for this was historically period dated dancing in the visitor center. They also set up a Wassail station, a roasted Chestnut fire pit, and in the plantation kitchen they served quail, 1800 style mashed potatoes, an 1800 dated recipe for bread pudding, pies, roasted carrots, and bread and rolls. Everything was fixed, backed, cooked in the plantation kitchen via "open hearth cooking."
Inside the Oakley house, they allowed everyone to have a walk through of the house with all the Christmas decorations (1800 style), with candles and everything. In the grand parlor they had a Dulcimer group (6 people with Dulcimers) and they played continuous Christmas music and gave talks when questioned about the Dulcimer and it's history.
My wife and I were "guides" in the house, directing people into the right direction. They used one door for entering, had a specific path everyone was to follow, and then exit a different door. So we were one of about 6 people directing people through the house.
It was really a fun event, and they had around 300 people that came through in the 2 and 1/2 hour event. Many of the folks who visited said they do this event every year. It's part of their Christmas Tradition now. How sad, the staff only do this one day and then it's all over. But to do it more, through the month, would take a lot (a lot) of work on everyone's part. So, it's only done 1 time.
Sorry folks, you'll have to wait until December 2025 if you want to experience this event now.
Today, I pulled 2 of those old Church pews sitting in the front of the Oakley House on the bottom porch to begin refinishing them. I'm doing only 2 at a time. There are a total of 7 of them. I have 2 done now.
Main bonfire, burning of the Yule Log.
The 1800's tradition was: As long as the Yule Log burned, the slaves did not have to work. So the slaves would find the largest tree and actually soak it in a body of water to make it burn slower. Then the log was set on fire and the festivities began. The longer the log burned, the longer time off the slaves had. So, the long would sometimes burn for a couple weeks or longer. It was also this time the slaves got their annual clothing allotment as Christmas gifts from the plantation owner (planter family). It sounds really cheezy based on our standards today, but back then it was a very, very big deal.
My wife and where I'm dressed for blacksmithing:
My wife and where I'm dressed as a plantation gentleman. (My bride of 39 years and 9 months sure looks good, don't she!)
"Big House" dining room table:
Other areas of the "Big House":
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