DECATUR-After a two-year break due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Historic Decatur Christmas Tour is set to return Dec. 10, 2022. Thirteen total tour sites including homes, churches and historic places will be open for viewing as part of the self-guided tour from 3 to 8 p.m., and along with the tour of some of Decatur’s most historic and architecturally significant dwellings, the festive event offers shopping, refreshments and live holiday music.
This year’s tour features six beautiful homes each beautifully decorated with luminaries, fruit, greenery and thousands of lights, four churches, two historic sites and an art center. Residences in the Albany and Old Decatur Historic Districts are not normally open for public viewing except when a select number of homes open their doors during the annual holiday tour.
The Old State Bank will serve as the tour’s main headquarters this year. Tickets may be purchased here and there will be food trucks available from noon to 8 p.m. The Carnegie Visual Arts Center, one of the few remaining original Carnegie Library buildings in the U.S., will serve as secondary headquarters. Tickets may be purchased and there will be Christmas carols performed by the Bank Street Players and Dream Weavers, an appearance by Santa Claus from 4 to 7 p.m. and carriage rides (weather permitting) from 4 to 8 p.m. Carriage ride tickets are $10 per person.
Participating properties include:
Albany District:
The Crawford-Gill House, 804 Jackson Street SE
The Gray-Wiley House, 1038 Jackson Street SE
The Papenburg House, 425 Sherman Street SE
Old Decatur District:
The Black House, 404 Canal Street NE
The Knight-Irwin House, 501 Walnut Street NE
The Lyons House, 703 Ferry Street NE
Other Sites:
Vintage Faith Church, 401 Sherman Street SE
St. John’s Episcopal Church, 202 Gordon Drive SE
Historic Depot and Railroad Museum, 701 Railroad Street NW
Westminster Presbyterian Church, 801 Jackson Street
First Missionary Baptist Church, 233 Vine Street SW
Old State Bank, 925 Bank Street
Carnegie Visual Arts Center, 207 Church Street
Along with the self-guided tour, this year’s schedule includes a holiday market and bells choir at the Westminster Presbyterian Church from 2 to 8 p.m. First Missionary Baptist Church will host a live presentation of the church’s history at 3:15, 4:15 and 5:15 p.m. The church was established in 1866, and in 1990, the Alabama Historical Commission added it to the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage Sites. Downtown merchants and restaurants will be open for dining and holiday shopping before and during the tour.
Tickets for the Historic Decatur Christmas Tour are $30 each and can be purchased in advance online at https://decaturchristmastour.
For a schedule of events and more information on each property, visit www.decaturchristmastour.com.
Media Release/Danielle Gibson, President & CEO
Decatur Morgan County Tourism, Inc.
