Candlelight Christmas at the Boyhood Home of Woodrow Wilson in Augusta

On cold December evenings in Augusta, a single rowhouse on Seventh Street becomes the kind of place that makes the past feel immediate. The Boyhood Home of President Woodrow Wilson at 415 Seventh Street, Augusta, GA, opens its parlors for A Christmas Carol in Candlelight, a two-night seasonal program that folds Victorian storytelling, live music, and hands-on family activities into a compact, atmospheric experience.

Visitors arrive between 5 and 7 PM on December 3–4, 2026, moving at their own pace through candlelit rooms dressed for the season. The program balances formal moments—the abridged readings of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol by Mark Albertin at 5:30 and 6:30 PM—with loose, convivial pieces of the evening: strings and guitar on Thursday, a cappella carols on Friday, and warm cups of apple cider or hot chocolate to sip between scenes. Children can make ornaments and send Victorian-inspired letters at a special station, and attendees are encouraged to wear period accessories to amplify the mood.

Architectural features are central to the experience. The Victorian home’s parlor, stair, and intimate dining room function as living sets, where original woodwork and period furnishings frame the readings and music. Rather than a staged production, the event lets the house itself set the scene—low light, wax candles, and the creak of floorboards make the storytelling feel immediate and homespun. This program is not a large theatrical spectacle; it is a community-centered evening that highlights local performers and the museum’s collection.

Practical visitor notes: tickets are $15 for adults, $12 for seniors, and $10 for children (not recommended for kids under five). Both nights run 5–7 PM with readings at 5:30 and 6:30 PM. Regular daytime tours of the house continue Wednesday through Saturday, 10 AM–4 PM, with the house decorated throughout December. The meeting point is 415 Seventh Street; arrive early for the best chance to explore each room between readings.

The program also functions as a tactile primer on Victorian holiday customs: handcrafted ornaments, letter-writing that echoes 19th-century stationers, and music that favors small ensembles—tools that help translate the abstract history of a presidential childhood into concrete, shareable moments. Locals come for the nostalgia; visitors come because it’s manageable, two-hour cultural stop between other downtown attractions. Purchase tickets early—seating and time slots are limited—and consider pairing the visit with a daytime house tour.