“Traditions of Christmas Past” is the focus of the Ross County Historical Society’s 2016 Christmas Open House. The event will feature traditional holiday decorations including a beautiful ten-foot tall Christmas tree decorated with hundreds of Pennsylvania German scissor-cut paper ornaments known as “Scherenschnitte” made by local artist Bonnie Grove. Grove, a retired Chillicothe teacher, hails from south-central Pennsylvania where she developed a passion for preserving the crafts of the early German immigrants who settled there.

Visitors will also enjoy a Victorian Christmas parlor with late 19th and early 20th century holiday decorations. Other featured exhibits include “Toys from the Attic,” “Chillicothe’s Model Railroad,” “Documenting Presidential Elections: 200 Years of Campaign Memorabilia,” and “Stars of the Masonic Opera House: Famous Performers Who Entertained Chillicothe a Century Ago.” The event will also provide an opportunity to see the magnificent marble statue of Ohio’s 31st Governor, William Allen, recently acquired from National Statuary Hall in the U.S. Capitol. Finally, The Silver Strings dulcimer group will perform traditional holiday music throughout the afternoon.

Admission is free and everyone is welcome for this fun afternoon walk down memory lane of Christmas past.