december 16–22, 2024
What's New
Lyceum Late-nights for Exhibits and Shopping
Alexandria History Museum at The Lyceum, 201 S. Washington Street
December 19
Lyceum open until 9 p.m.
The Alexandria History Museum at The Lyceum will be open until 9 p.m. so guests can enjoy the exhibits and finish some holiday shopping. Support Historic Alexandria by purchasing gifts perfect for any City resident or history enthusiast. Cash bar open 4-9 p.m.
The 2024 Holiday Ornament is Here!
This year's Historic Alexandria ornament honors the 200th anniversary of Lafayette's visit to Alexandria in 1824. This beautiful piece showcases the "Lafayette House" where he lodged during his time here. The three inch brass ornament comes in a custom box with a card detailing its historical significance.
$25 - Available NOW in Historic Alexandria museum stores and in our online store. Online orders must be placed by Wednesday, December 18 to arrive in time for Christmas.
Specialty Tour: A Toast to the Ladies!
Gadsby’s Tavern Museum, 134 N. Royal Street
Saturday, December 21
5:30 p.m.
$20, $15 Historic Alexandria Members
Purchase tickets.
This special tour and discussion will highlight the many women over the centuries associated with Gadsby’s Tavern Museum. From Hannah Griffith, the first woman to operate a coffeehouse in the tavern, to the spearheading preservationist Rebecca Ramsay Reese, these women’s stories will spark conversations about political, economic, and social conditions for women in the past and the present. Ticket includes tea, which can be carried throughout the tour and discussion.
Upcoming Events
View the Historic Alexandria Calendar
Diarmuid Ó Meachair and Matt Mulqueen (piano) performing traditional Irish music in Concert at Historic Lyceum
Alexandria History Museum at The Lyceum, 201 S. Washington Street
Thursday, December 19
7 p.m.
$25, $10 under 18
Purchase tickets.
Diarmuid Ó Meachair is an Accordion player and sean-nós singer from Cúil Aodha, Co. Cork. He is also an accomplished Melodeon player and sean-nós singer. He was awarded the prestigious Young Musician of the year award from TG4 for 2022. He is one of the most exciting accordion players of his generation. Diarmuid is part of the teaching staff at the Department of Music in UCC, teaching accordion and melodeon. He has released 3 solo albums since December 2022. His second solo album “”Melodeon Medleys”” was released in July 2023 and his debut album “”Siúl na Slí”” was released under the Raelach Records label with support from the Arts Council of Ireland and Ealaín na Gaeltachta.
Matt Mulqueen was born in Baltimore, Maryland, into a musical family. His older brothers played button accordion and fiddle, and his sister became a champion step-dancer. This environment instilled in Matt an irresistible desire to learn and play Irish traditional music. Listening to the host of traditional musicians who haunt Irish pubs and to innumerable recordings allowed Matt to forge his own compelling style of accompanying Irish music. Matt returns to the Lyceum, having performed with Lexi Boatright and Cara Wildman in 2022.
Light refreshments will be available with wine, beer and non-alcoholic drinks available for purchase.
Kissing Ball Workshops
Lee-Fendall House Museum & Garden, 614 Oronoco Street
Saturday, December 21, 11 a.m.- 12:30 p.m.
Sunday, December 22, 2 p.m.- 3:30 p.m.
$25
Purchase tickets.
Learn the history behind using greenery to decorate homes for the holidays, then craft your own boxwood kissing ball using fresh cuttings from the Lee-Fendall garden!
Please note that these workshops will be held outdoors so it's advisable to dress appropriately. Registration must be done in advance and costs $25 per person and includes all materials needed to make your own boxwood kissing ball.
Story Time for Little Historians
Alexandria Black History Museum, 902 Wythe Street
Saturday, January 11
10 a.m.- 10:45 a.m.
Free
Dynamic storytellers use books written by and about African American people and other communities of color to engage with ages 5-8, then stay to learn about the principles of Kwanzaa. Kwanzaa workshop begins at 11 a.m.
Martin Luther King Jr. Poster Exhibition
On view in the Vola Lawson Lobby of City Hall, 301 King Street
Wednesday, January 15 - Friday, February 28
Free
The City of Alexandria honors the memory and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with its annual Poster Exhibition and Program. Posters will be on view from Alexandria City Public School students in the Vola Lawson Lobby of City Hall from January 18, 2016 through February 29, 2016.
The Alexandria Black History Museum with the Office of Historic Alexandria sponsors an annual Student Poster Exhibition for Alexandria City Public School students, grades 2-5.
Meaningful Conversations about Racism and What to Do About It
Topic: Refugees and Immigrants
Alexandria Black History Museum, 902 Wythe Street
Thursday, January 16
7 - 9 p.m.
Free
Join Alexandria community members for open and honest discussions about various topics. Join us as we resume our meaningful conversations that explore and celebrate the diversity of cultures and peoples in our area, address the attitudes and behaviors that still divide us, and seek remedies grounded in the recognition that we are one interconnected, interdependent human family.
Seán Gavin and Josh Dukes in Concert at the Lyceum
Alexandria History Museum at The Lyceum, 201 S. Washington Street
Thursday, January 16
7 p.m.
$25, $10 under 18
Purchase tickets.
A master of the uilleann pipes, Irish flute, and tin whistle, Seán Gavin is one of the most highly regarded performers and teachers of traditional Irish music. He is the first musician born outside Ireland to win the prestigious Seán Ó Riada Gold medal, and the author of a popular tin whistle book published by Hal Leonard. Seán is the founder and director of the Irish Music Institute - a non-profit music school based in Southeast Michigan. With recordings, lectures, and performances around the globe to his credit, Seán is back in his native Detroit, where he continues to play, teach, and promote traditional Irish music.
Josh Dukes is an All Ireland champion accompanist and a highly sought after music teacher in the Baltimore/Washington D.C. area. A multi-instrumentalist whose talents embrace the ceili drums, guitar, bouzouki, bodhran, flute, and tin whistle. He has shared the stage with such renowned musicians as John Doyle, Paddy Keenan, Billy and Sean McComiskey, Brendan Mulvihill, Kevin Crawford, Zan McLeod, and Myron Bretholz. Josh lives in the greater D.C. Area with his wife and two daughters.
Support Historic Alexandria
Historic Alexandria receives City operational funding to support its mission; however, these resources do not cover the full scope of the department’s strategic goals and projects. Donations, special revenue, and grant funding help supplement staff, conservation work, and educational programs. Please consider making a gift today.
Historic Alexandria Museum Hours
All Museums will be closed on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day
Alexandria Archaeology Museum
Tuesdays–Fridays, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m., Saturdays, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sundays, 1 – 5 p.m.
Alexandria Black History Museum
Thursdays & Fridays, 11 a.m.– 4 p.m., Saturdays, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sundays, 1– 5 p.m.
Alexandria History Museum at The Lyceum
Thursdays & Fridays, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m., Saturdays, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sundays, 1 – 5 p.m. Special additional hours during the holidays: Thursday, December 19, 4-9 p.m. and Tuesday, December 31, 11 a.m.--4 p.m. Closed December 26.
Fort Ward Museum
Thursdays & Fridays, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m., Saturdays, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sundays, 1 – 5 p.m.
Freedom House Museum
Saturdays, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sundays, 1 – 5 p.m.
Freedom House is open on weekends only through early January. Group visits available by special appointment.
Friendship Firehouse Museum
Saturday, December 28, 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Gadsby’s Tavern Museum
Thursdays & Fridays, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m., Saturdays, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sundays, 1 – 5 p.m. Special additional hours during the holidays: Monday, December 30, 11 a.m.- 4 p.m.
Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum
Wednesdays–Fridays, 11 a.m.– 4 p.m., Saturdays, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sundays 1 - 5 p.m. Special additional hours during the holidays: Monday, December 30, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.
Visit our website and follow us on social media to discover new things about your hometown. For more information, visit alexandriava.gov/Historic. Admission to City of Alexandria museums is complimentary for city residents.
For reasonable disability accommodation, contact Nicole Quinn at historicalexandria@alexandriava.gov or call 703.746.4554, Virginia Relay 711.
This Week in Alexandria's History
On December 16, 1766, George Washington was elected a Trustee of the Town of Alexandria. At the time, Washington was a young man of 34 years, but double the age he was when he first helped lay out the plan for the city in 1749. Married and owner of the Mount Vernon estate by 1766, Washington was an established and socially prominent planter in Fairfax County. On paper, he was one of Virginia’s wealthiest citizens. Recognizing the importance of diversification, that year he started switching Mount Vernon's main cash crop away from the exportation of tobacco to Britain to the production of wheat and other grain crops that could be grown, milled, and sold within the American colonies. Although he always considered his primary profession as a farmer, Washington’s national leadership skills were honed from his early political experience and service right here in Alexandria.
Upcoming Commission and Committee Events
Commissions Supporting Historic Alexandria
December 16 George Washington Birthday Celebration Committee
Lloyd House, 220 N. Washington Street
7 p.m.December 17 Historic Alexandria Resources Commission (HARC)
City Hall, Room 1900 (First Floor), 301 King Street
7 p.m.- December 18 Alexandria Archaeology Commission
Lloyd House, 220 N. Washington Street
7 p.m. - January 6 George Washington Birthday Celebration Committee
Via zoom, register online.
7 p.m.