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Christmas Open House, Sod House Museum
December 10, 2016, 2 p.m.–4 p.m.
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Santas from around the world will be at the Sod House Museum’s Christmas Open House on Saturday, December 10, from 2 pm to 4 pm. Martha Ray of Pawnee and others will portray the gift bringers from around the world.
The stories and traditions of Santa Claus can be traced to a monk named St. Nicholas who gave away his wealth and traveled the countryside helping the poor and sick. Over the course of many years, Nicholas’s popularity spread and he became known as the protector of children. In the early 1800s the United States depicted Santa as a cheerful man with a full white beard who carried a sack full of toys. He flew from house to house in a sleigh led by eight reindeer, leaving presents for the children.
America’s Santa Claus was not the only one to make an appearance at Christmas time; he was known all over the world by other names. Christkind or Kris Kringle delivered presents to well-behaved Swiss and German children. Scandinavian children enjoyed visits from Jultomten, a jolly elf who delivers gifts in a sleigh drawn by goats. While in England Father Christmas visits children’s homes on Christmas Eve, filling their stockings with holiday treats. French children will find their shoes are filled with candy by Père Noël. In Russia, it is believed an elderly woman named Babouschka visits children on January 5, leaving gifts at their bedsides in the hope that one of them is the baby Jesus.
The Sod House Friends group is hosting this event and will serve cookies and hot cider. Join the festivities and visit with the Santas from around the world!
