By Mary Ann Bourbeau
KEYPORT – Take a charming trolley tour to visit Keyport’s Victorian homes all decorated for the Christmas holiday. Residents and businesses have decked their halls in anticipation of the Keyport Candlelight House Tour Saturday, Dec. 14 from 2 to 7 p.m.
The tour begins at the Keyport Historical Society Museum, located at 34 Main St. Maps will be supplied so each participant can experience the tour at their own pace by continuous trolley, on foot or by car. More than 15 homes, businesses and churches are participating this year, all festively deco- rated inside and out.
“These houses have some really great history,” said Paul McKeefry, who organizes the tour. “Many of them are from the 1800s. The owners explain to visitors how they acquired the house and what they have done to it.”
There is also a tour guide on the trolley who narrates during the excursion.
“A guidebook explains the history of each house, the renovations that have been done and the look and feel that the homeowners went for in terms of decorating,” said McKeefry. “Many people go all out with every room decorated. Some have multiple Christmas trees. Others feature unique parts of the house or highlight the architectural aspects, like the great moldings. At some of the bigger houses, the homeowners have friends and relatives help with the tour to talk about different rooms.”
You won’t see any Clark Griswold “Christmas Vacation” homes on this tour, however. “One or two might have extravagant light displays but there aren’t any off-the-wall decorations,” he said. “Most look to keep the character of the home.”
Participants should allow at least three hours for the tour, which is earlier in the day from years past. This allows time to shop in local business before the tour or to have dinner in town afterward.
Keyport has been hosting Candlelight House Tours since 1980. The event was originally hosted by the Keyport Business Alliance. The historical society took it over in the early 2000s and it’s now the biggest annual fundraiser for the historical society Museum, housed in an 1895 structure that was devastated by Super Storm Sandy.
McKeefry and his wife Nancy Smalling, who serves as treasurer for the house tour, got involved in the historical society after Sandy. Smalling worked to get grants to rebuild the structure, which was originally the Steamboat Dock Museum and most recently used as a tea cottage. It reopened as the Historical Society Museum in October 2017.
Together, McKeefry and Smalling work to make sure the tour is fresh each year to show off the town to both residents and newcomers.
“We try to vary the houses on the tour every year,” said McKeefry. “Our rule of thumb is we don’t like to repeat homes more than every three years. This year, we have at least 10 houses that have never been on the list or haven’t been on in quite some time. “
The Keyport Candlelight House Tour will take place rain or shine. Tickets can be purchased in advance for $20 at Espresso Joe’s at 50 West Front St., the Keyport Public Library at 109 Broad St. or through PayPal at keyporthistoricalsociety.com. Admission the day of the tour is $25. For more information, call 732-739-7379.
The first 500 participants will receive $10 in Keyport Kash to spend at local businesses. Keyport Kash is a program of the Keyport Bayfront Business cooperative designed to attract shoppers and diners to the quaint Bayshore town.
Arts and entertainment reporter Mary Ann Bourbeau can be reached at mbourbeau@tworiver times.com.
