BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//jEvents 2.0 for Joomla//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/New_York BEGIN:STANDARD DTSTART:20251211T100000 RDATE:20260308T030000 TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:America/New_York EST END:STANDARD BEGIN:STANDARD DTSTART:20261101T010000 RDATE:20270314T030000 TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:America/New_York EST END:STANDARD BEGIN:STANDARD DTSTART:20271107T010000 RDATE:20280312T030000 TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:America/New_York EST END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT DTSTART:20260308T030000 RDATE:20261101T010000 TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:America/New_York EDT END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:DAYLIGHT DTSTART:20270314T030000 RDATE:20271107T010000 TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:America/New_York EDT END:DAYLIGHT END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT UID:06f72c809330caa6e552fdb953b064f1 CATEGORIES:Holiday Events SUMMARY:Christmas in the Country at Cracker Country LOCATION:Cracker Country, 4800 Hwy 301 N., Tampa, FL 33610 DESCRIPTION;ENCODING=QUOTED-PRINTABLE:Bring the family for a great day experiencing the sights, sounds, and smell s of an old-fashioned country Christmas. Learn how the holiday traditions o f the 19th century differ from those of the 21st through hands-on historica l interpretations, carols, traditional decorations, and more! \n\nVisitors will also have the opportunity to step into the daily rhythms of 19th centu ry life and discover how closely holiday preparations were tied to the land and the seasons. Long before modern conveniences, families spent weeks pre paring for Christmas by preserving foods, sewing garments, and crafting dec orations by hand. Throughout the grounds, knowledgeable interpreters will d emonstrate these skills and share the stories behind them, helping guests b etter understand how Floridians balanced work and celebration during the wi nter season.\n\nActivities: Experience a 19th-century Florida Christmas in the Country at Cracker Country. Stroll through the four-acre complex and ex perience seasonal décor, music, and traditions in 13 original buildings. Gu ests can collect holiday keepsakes like salt dough ornaments, Christmas car d ornaments, and paper ornaments, and discover everyday pioneer chores like churning butter and cleaning laundry with an old-fashioned washboard.\n\nM ain Stage: Band information coming soon with performances at 11am, 1pm, & 3 pm\n\nShopping: There are lots of unique holiday gifts to be found at the G eneral Store! The store features nostalgic and reproduction items, historic al toys and games, books, candy, and other unique gifts. The General Store accepts cash, debit, and credit cards. Proceeds from sales in the General S tore help support Cracker Country’s field trip programs.\n \nThe Decoration s: Before the era of electric lights and mass-produced ornaments, rural fam ilies created holiday decorations using materials that were readily availab le or made by hand. In Florida, this often meant decorating with palmetto f ronds, Florida holly, magnolia branches, pinecones, and citrus fruits. Addi tional ornaments were crafted from everyday items—sewn from scraps of fabri c or shaped and baked at home, such as salt dough decorations. These simple , natural elements reflected both creativity and resourcefulness, bringing a festive spirit to the home through handmade and locally gathered items.\n \nChristmas Holiday Traditions: Christmas was a time to gather the family a nd enjoy the festivities of the season, such as a holiday meal. A tradition al holiday meal in a rural Florida home often featured a modestly decorated table, sometimes including a small Christmas tree adorned with gifts and h omemade ornaments. Decorations commonly made use of natural materials such as Florida holly, citrus fruit, palmetto fronds, and magnolia branches, alo ng with popcorn garlands and paper ornaments crafted by hand.\n\nAnother co untry custom was serenading, which grew out of European practices involving celebratory noise-making and the firing of Christmas guns. Groups would tr avel from farm to farm ringing cowbells and banging on tin pans, and the ho useholds they visited were expected to welcome them inside with small gifts , treats, and entertainment.\n\nIn wealthier households, children might rec eive an array of store-bought gifts such as doll beds or toy musical instru ments. In contrast, in more rural areas of Florida, most presents were hand made, with only an occasional store-bought item appearing under the tree or in a stocking. Accounts from A Foxfire Christmas describe how many rural A ppalachian families received simple gifts like fruit, cakes, or nuts. A sin gle handmade toy might be the only present a child would have until the fol lowing year. X-EXTRAINFO:Advanced ticket purchase is required. We regret that there will be no on-si te ticket sales. All ticket sales are final. \n\nParking: Enter the Fairgro unds via MLK Parking Entrance and park near Gate 2.\nParking: $10 online | $12 onsite DTSTAMP:20261018T191438Z DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20261212T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20261212T160000 SEQUENCE:0 TRANSP:OPAQUE END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR