Take a tour of holiday homes on the Peninsula
59th Christmas Homes Tour
9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday. The 59th annual tour features five unique properties from the 18th to the 21st century. These include the private home of the Reeves family on Scotland Street, the Timson House, the Colonial Williamsburg StablesHome of the Rare Breeds Program, the Unicorn’s Horn, and a discovery opportunity of the Robert Carter House, which will provide an inside look of how the research is done by Colonial Williamsburg’s architectural preservation. Tickets will be available at the Williamsburg Lodge and Visitor’s Center for $35. Individual house tickets will be available the day of the tour. For information, visit greenspringgardenclub.org.
Christmas in Smithfield Tour
2-8 p.m. Saturday and 1-4 p.m. Dec. 2. Much of Smithfield looks the same today as it did when Arthur
Smith IV laid out the town in 1752. But Smithfield is more than what Southern Living called the “famous salt-cured delicacy that defines the flavor of Virginia,” and more than its archi- tecture and fascinating history — it’s a living place — and it is never more alive than it is in the holiday season. Christmas in Smithfield brings cherished holiday memories to life. Proceeds from Christmas in Smithfield go to the 1750 Isle of Wight Courthouse, a program of Historic Smithfield Inc. Tickets are $40 and available at the Smithfield Visitor Center, 319 Main St. in downtown Smithfield or at the Smithfield Center on the day of the event. For more information, visit christmasinsmithfield.com.
19th Onancock Christmas Tour
1-5 p.m. Dec. 8. Homes include: Wesley, an 1809 federal-style house, with 12-foot ceilings, heart pine floors and six fireplaces, one of which is inlaid with reeds from Onancock Creek; Cokesbury, originally called Poulson Place, featuring a massive cooking fireplace in the kitchen and a little schoolhouse, operated by the Poulsons in the early 1900s; The Cove, a Victorian-era, Georgian style brick home parceled from the adjacent property, Cokesbury, in 1885 as a wedding present to Charlotte “Lottie” Poulson; The Minton House, a picturesque, federal-style home, reached by a winding driveway through tall pine trees; Heartsworth Cottage, built on grounds that are full of history, including the Poulson Point Cemetery with markers dating back to 1759; and Westwil Cottage, designed and built in 2012 for the owners’ senior years, a low-maintenance, brick home with extrathick exterior walls, energy-efficient heating/air systems and eco-foam insulation.
The tour benefits the Citizens for a Better Eastern Shore. Tickets are $20 and available on eventbrite.com at Onancock Christmas 2018. Also available at Book Bin, Historic Onancock School, Ker Place, Carousel Gift Shop at Riverside Shore Memorial Hospital, Machipongo Trading Co., North Street Market and Thomas Gardens. For more information, call 757-710-6353 or visit onancock.org.
Fort Monroe Mistletoe Tour
11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Dec. 8, starting at Fort Monroe Authority, 20 Ingalls Road, Hampton. Tour five historic private residences. Additional locations on the tour include the Casemate Museum, the Chapel of the Centurion, the YMCA and view exteriors of other historic locations all dressed in traditional holiday splendor. Advance ticket sales are $20 plus processing fees. Advance/ online ticket sales end 5 p.m. Dec. 7. Tickets will be sold on site the day of the event for $27 at 10:30 a.m. All ticket sales are final and non-refundable. Tours will be held rain or shine. Tickets are available on Eventbrite, and can be used anytime between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. the day of the event. For more info, visit Fort Monroe Mistletoe Homes on Facebook.
— From staff reports