Mark your calendars for the Museum’s most exciting event of the year: the 5th annual Holiday Home Tour, on December 2 (Friday) and December 3 (Saturday) from 10-4. This highly anticipated occasion will feature five beautifully restored vintage homes located in Fernandina Beach’s historic district. Each of the homes will be open to the public for the very first time. The Holiday Home Tour is the inaugural event of Fernandina’s festive Christmas season and will showcase homes decorated by professional florists/designers. Free trolley service will transport guests to each of the homes while costumed carolers hark back to the days of Charles Dickens.

An exciting new feature of the tour is a gourmet luncheon available at the Beech Street Grill, a restaurant housed in the historically significant Bell Brothers’ building. Not only will the venue be lavishly decorated but a display of turn-of-the-century clothing featuring dresses and accessories which could have been worn by the lovely ladies of early Fernandina.

Houses on tour this year include:

14 S. 7th Street:Imagine a house built in the 1880’s and never painted until almost a hundred years later! The beautifully restored Peter Williams house may have been the first built in the area as part of a “mall” concept where Williams, a real estate developer, envisioned joining several properties together for commercial purposes. Look for stained glass and porches with turned posts and brackets.

810 Atlantic:A true artist’s cottage. The homeowner is a potter and the home reflects her artistic touches. An 1891 frame vernacular, it is beautifully beautifully painted in beige with maroon trim around the windows. It is noteworthy for its sidelights and transom over the entrance and Queen Anne ornamentation on the porch.

421 N. 3rd Street:The original home of Captain Davis, a local bar pilot, was built in 1907. Captain Davis was a legend in the shrimping business and was credited with an important development in that industry. The large home is noteworthy for its Queen Anne influence and it has been altered by the modern addition of a two story gallery. Ask the guides about the April Fool’s Day joke played on Captain Davis by some of the shrimp boat captains.

614 Beech Street:A beautifully restored Italianate style home, built in 1891, before the demise of the famed Egmont Hotel located across the street. The home showcases heart-pine floors, vintage light fixtures, flocked wallpaper, pocket doors and Victorian millwork throughout. The theme for the Christmas decorating is “A Children’s Christmas.”

223 North 4th Street: A fun, family house with bright turquoise paint, accented with purple trim. Front parlor is used as a music room by the active young family who live there and the room will be filled with professional musicians playing familiar holiday carols. Note the children's club house in the back--all decorated for Christmas!

Tickets will be available the end of October through www.ameliamuseum.org and other selected locations on Amelia Island.

Prices: $25 prior to December 2; $30 on days of the tour

Parking available at the Museum or on the streets surrounding each home. Free trolley service provided.

Luncheon and costume display at Beech Street Grill, available on a separate ticket for $15. Seatings are at 11:30 and 1:00 with reservations and ticket purchase through the Museum.