Holiday candlelight tours to shine at historic houses in Washington
WASHINGTON – Leslie Yoder says visitors at the historic LeMoyne House are intrigued as they step back in time and learn about how people lived and celebrated Christmas in the Victorian era. That’s why holiday candlelight tours at the LeMoyne House, Pennsylvania’s first National Historic Landmark of the Underground Railroad, and the Bradford House, the first stone house built west of the Alleghenies, draw many visitors each year.
Both historic houses will be decorated for Christmas. Volunteer docents dressed in period clothing will guide visitors through the candlelit rooms as they tell stories about the past.
“I think basically what people like about both houses is the fact that they are taking a step back in time,” said Yoder, education coordinator at the Washington Historical Society, which operates the LeMoyne House, located at 49 E. Maiden St. “I think that is what intrigues people. They like to see the candlelight, period clothing and the sights and sounds. It’s an immersion into another time period.”
The candlelight tours will continue Saturday and Sunday from 5 to 9 p.m. Adults can tour both historic homes for $8 or tour one house for $5. Ticket prices for students, including college students with proper identification, are $4 for both houses or $3 for one house. Children under 6 are admitted free.
Each tour will take about one hour, and reservations are not required. Yoder said the two different tours can be taken the same evening or on separate nights. This year, Yoder said the LeMoyne House will be decorated for a Victorian Christmas in what she calls a “gaudy style.”
The elaborate decorations will feature angel figurines and bows in deep shades of green and burgundy, popular color schemes at the turn of the century.
“We change the Christmas decorations around from year to year,” she said. “On the tour, people will find out what life was like in the early 1900s, and what was going on nationally and locally. It gives them a good idea of what life was like in Washington, Pa., and how it differs from life in the area today.”
John Julius LeMoyne, the father of Francis Julius LeMoyne, built the stately two-story stone house in 1812. Both father and son were successful practicing physicians. Despite the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850, Francis LeMoyne risked his personal freedom and fortune to do what he knew was morally right – take a stand against the institution of slavery. The successful doctor opened his home and properties as stops along the Underground Railroad, the series of safe hiding places for runaway slaves as they made their way north on their journey to Canada and freedom.
“Francis Julius LeMoyne became a doctor like his father and an outspoken advocate of abolition,” Yoder said. “Basically, the doctor used the house as a place to shelter African-Americans, who escaped from the South to the North to freedom. We have no idea how many people were sheltered here. But we do have letters that were written to the doctor that give you the distinct idea that slaves were harbored here.”
Yoder said those documents were used by the U.S. Department of Interior to give the LeMoyne House designation as Pennsylvania’s first National Historic Landmark of the Underground Railroad.
“We have taken steps to restore and preserve the house because of the historical significance,” Yoder said. “We have tried to keep it as historically accurate as possible. But you won’t find any evidence of the Underground Railroad at the house. They had to be very secretive because it was so dangerous. There are some homes that had trap doors, but you’re not going to find any trap doors here. There are no confirmed tunnels that we know of at this point. You won’t see any slave chains or anything like that in the house.”
The Bradford House, owned by David Bradford, a successful lawyer and businessman who became a prominent figure during the Whiskey Rebellion, will depict a simpler Christmas celebration during the 1700s, according to director Myrna Hart.
The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission assumed control of the house and supervised the restoration of its 18th century design. Hart said the furnishings are those which were used at that time in Pennsylvania and would reflect Bradford’s place in society.
“We usually have about 300 or 400 visitors who come during the five days of the tour, which makes it quite busy,” Hart said. “Some people are here to see the furniture, and some people want to know what people’s lives were like here on the frontier. The Indians were still a threat at that time, especially in the Wheeling area. We try to gear the tours to the interest of the visitors.”
Hart said the Bradford House will be adorned with lots of swags with pine, holly, berries, apples and lots of candles. The decorations will not include Christmas trees, which were not used until the 1840s and 1850s when German influence made them popular.
“We use the natural pine to decorate the exterior of the house, but we can’t use it inside because so many people are allergic to pine,” Hart said. “We use artificial pine inside, but you really can’t tell the difference. We spray the pine scent, and people think they are in a pine forest.”
The Bradford House reflected the owner’s high social status, not only by its size, but also by its features, including a magnificent mahogany staircase and interior wood finishing, which show remarkable craftsmanship.
Bradford and his family lived in this house from 1788-94. By 1794, Bradford had become a prominent figure in the Whiskey Rebellion. The insurrection was caused, in part, by the lack of federal courts, which necessitated trips to Philadelphia for trial, large numbers of absentee landlords, lack of protection from the Indians and the high excise tax on whiskey.
President George Washington ordered 12,000 to 13,000 troops to the Washington County area. This was the first test of the power of the new government. Bradford, under threat of arrest, headed south to Spanish West Florida (Louisiana). Bradford later received a Presidential Pardon, and his family sold the house and followed him south.
For more information about either tour, call the Washington County Historical Society at 724-225-6740 or the Bradford House at 724-222-3604.