A Victorian Holiday At The Mark Twain House

HARTFORD — The Mark Twain House & Museum has been decorated in festive Victorian style to welcome visitors during the holiday season. Through January 5, Twain’s 19-room mansion, resplendent with Tiffany interiors, will be adorned as it was for holiday celebrations from 1874 to 1891, when the author, his wife and their three daughters lived in the house.

The curatorial staff of the Mark Twain House has extensively researched holiday traditions of the Victorian period and has decorated the house according to information gleaned from Clemens family letters and memorabilia, including receipts for everything from food and gifts to ribbons and wreaths, to give visitors a true representation of the late 1800s and the family of Sam Clemens (Mark Twain).

Visitors to the Twain House during the holiday period will find not just a beautifully decorated Victorian house, but they will also get a glimpse at how this family celebrated the season.

During a one-hour guided tour of the restored home, visitors will get the feeling that they have stepped back into time – and perhaps are stopping into 351 Farmington Avenue on Christmas Day to call on the Clemens family: Sam, Livy, Susy, Clara, and Jean.   

Children and adults alike will find reminders of Christmas past throughout the house. The dining room table is set for a traditional Christmas dinner. In the entry hall, a kissing ball of mistletoe dangles overhead, and the home’s massive staircase is wreathed in garlands and ribbons. Gifts in various stages of wrapping have been placed in bedrooms and the children’s schoolroom on the second floor.

“Traditionally, Christmas trees in the late 19th Century were decorated with both store-bought and handmade ornaments. The tree on display, complete with hand-strung popcorn and cranberries, reflects the true Christmas tree of that period,” said Patti Philippon, the Beatrice Fox Auerbach Chief Curator. Gifts found beneath the tree are representative of gifts that the family actually received, according to letters written by the Clemens family members.

A separate tour of the kitchen area provides a glimpse into the lives of the household staff of a Victorian home, giving visitors an indication of the preparations necessary for the elaborate meals the Clemens family hosted, particularly during the holidays.

Now on display in the changing exhibition gallery is “Twain, Tiffany and Other Treasures: Highlights from the Collections of The Mark Twain House & Museum,” an exhibition of Gilded Age decorative and fine arts objects and items made by important artists and artisans, such as Louis Comfort Tiffany, who were patronized by Sam and Livy Clemens. Many objects, including dozens of vases, lamps, glasses and other objects from Tiffany, have never before been on display at the museum.

Along with the house tour, visitors can also view “I Have Sampled This Life,” an exhibition of Twain’s life and continuing influence, as well as a video biography of Twain by Ken Burns.

The Museum Center offers Tallulah’s at the Mark Twain café which is open Monday through Saturday from 10 am until 3 pm for lunch and snacks. The Mark Twain Museum Store has a wide range of holiday gifts, fine pens and journals, Victorian-style clothing and jewelry, as well as all of Twain’s published works.

The Mark Twain House is the author’s Hartford home, his primary residence from 1874 to 1891. A National Register Historic Landmark since 1963, the house, located on Farmington Avenue in the historic Asylum Hill section of Hartford, is open year-round for guided tours. For tour information, call 860-247-0998, extension 129.

The Mark Twain House & Museum is open daily throughout December. Guided tours are conducted from 9:30 am to 5:30 pm Monday through Saturday, and from noon to 5:30 pm on Sunday. The last tour begins one hour before closing. The museum will be closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and also New Year’s Day.

Admission is $14 for adults, $12 for seniors , $8 for ages 6–16, and free age 5 and under.