Celebrate the Holidays at Whitehall
Whitehall's first floor is decorated in traditional Gilded Age splendor for the month of December each year. The focal point is a 16-foot tall Christmas Tree in the Grand Hall, adorned with colored electrical lights and traditional Gilded Age style ornaments. Bring your family and experience holiday traditions like the Annual Tree Lighting where you can meet Santa Claus, enjoy refreshments, hear music on the historic organ and watch as Henry Flagler's youngest descendants light the Grand Hall Christmas Tree. The Special Christmas Lecture explores beloved Christmas stories and events to better understand modern Christmas traditions. During Holiday Evening tours families tour Whitehall after hours by the glow of the original light fixtures, and learn the origins of American Christmas traditions.
Special Christmas Lecture
‘Twas the Night Before Christmas:
The Story of a Poem That Dramatically Changed the American Christmas Tradition
by Nancy H. Marshall
December 4, 2011
Nancy H. Marshall discusses Clement Clark Moore's "A Visit from St. Nicholas" and explores how a bedtime story written nearly 200 years ago has guided American Christmas traditions from the late 19th century through the present.Nancy H. Marshall is the author of "The Night Before Christmas: A Descriptive Bibliography of Clement Clarke Moore's Immortal Poem." She is a retired Dean of University Libraries at The College of William and Mary. She has been collecting Christmas memorabilia and editions of Clement Clarke Moore's “A Visit from St. Nicholas,” more commonly known today as 'Twas The Night Before Christmas, for nearly half a century.
Sponsored by 
Christmas Tree Lighting
December 2, 2012
3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Free with Museum Admission
For more than four decades the Flagler Museum has observed the tradition of Henry Flagler's youngest descendants lighting the Museum's Christmas Tree on the first Sunday of December.
Schedule of Events
Seasonal refreshments in the West Room - 3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Santa Claus in the Pavilion - 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Brief Organ Performances in the Music Room
3:30 p.m., 3:50 p.m., and 4:10 p.m.
Installed in 1902, the J.H. & C.S. Odell pipe organ incorporates 1,249 metal and wood pipes powered by massive bellows. The Flaglers employed an organist to provide music for all their social functions held at the estate throughout the Season.
Brief Piano Performances in the Drawing Room
3:30 p.m., 3:50 p.m., and 4:10 p.m.
Holiday music will be performed on the Steinway Piano. Original to Whitehall's Drawing Room, the grand art case piano was custom designed to match the aluminum leaf detailing of the Louis XVI style room.
Holiday Caroling in the Courtyard - 4:30 p.m.
A choral performance will celebrate the season with holiday carols. Entertaining duringthe Flagler era often centered around musical events. Musicale, concert, and orchestra performances were often held at Whitehall during the winter Season.
Christmas Tree Lighting - 4:55 p.m.
Henry Flagler's youngest descendants will light the 16ft. tall Grand Hall Christmas tree. The Flaglers celebrated Christmas in a traditional Gilded Age fashion, with a tree richly decorated with ornaments, colored electric lights, and gifts for the local children. The Museum continues that tradition and will hand out Animal Crackers, a snack invented in the Gilded Age. The iconic circus box with a string was originally designed to be used as a Christmas Tree ornament.
Holiday Shopping
The Flagler Museum Store offers a variety of specialty gifts, many developed exclusively for the Flagler Museum. Each product is designed to evoke the romance and grandeur of the Gilded Age, as epitomized by the National Historic Landmark Whitehall. All Flagler Members receive a 10% discount on store purchases.
Holiday Evening Tours
December 17 - 23, 2011
Tours begin at 7:05 p.m., 7:15 p.m., and 7:25 p.m.
$25 for adults
$15 for children under age 17
Advance purchase required
Please call (561) 655-2833
During this beloved annual event, families tour Whitehall after hours and discover the origins of American Christmas traditions. Guests will have a rare opportunity to see Whitehall by the glow of the original 1902 light fixtures. Every visitor will receive a traditional Christmas cracker following the tour. A choral group will sing carols, and holiday refreshments will be served. The Museum Store will remain open for holiday shopping.