1776: Yuletide in Revolutionary Annapolis

Timed-entry tickets; advance registration strongly recommended, walk-ups accommodated as space permits. The Paca House interior has several flights of stairs (the garden terrace is reachable via the driveway; accessible restroom by ramp); the Hogshead requires a flight of stairs and has no restrooms. Food samples may contain gluten and nuts.

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About this adventure

Historic Annapolis marks America's 250th by recreating the holiday season of 1776 across two of its downtown sites on one December afternoon. At the William Paca House, Annapolis Living Historians lead 30-minute guided tours through candlelit rooms dressed with luminaries and garlands, trading Revolutionary-era gossip and political news in character. Santa Claus waits in the Summer House in the Paca Garden from 2 to 5 pm, and visitors can make their own holiday craft and enjoy seasonal refreshments while musicians and singers perform colonial music. A few blocks away the Hogshead Trades Museum turns into 'Hogshead Tavern', with live colonial music, sweet treats, warm spiced cider and local tradespeople showing how Annapolitans of every walk of life got ready for the season. One admission covers both sites and you can start at either, which makes it a manageable outing with children: a short tour, a Santa visit and a craft in one stop, then a walk down Pinkney Street for cider. Entry is by timed tour slot, so book ahead.